$2.5 million proposed to aid Quail Valley sewer project

News release from Eastern Municipal Water District:

PERRIS -- Two Eastern Municipal Water District projects have received preliminary federal funding allocations in appropriations legislation, thanks to the diligence of Representatives Ken Calvert and Mark Takano.

In the House Appropriations Committee’s FY2022 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies legislation, EMWD’s Quail Valley Septic to Sewer program is slated to receive $2.5 million from Congressman Ken Calvert’s request, and its Mead Valley Booster Station project received $1 million from Congressman Mark Takano’s request.

If approved by Congress and signed into law by the President, the funds will be administered through the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s State and Tribal Assistance Grants program.

“EMWD is incredibly appreciative of the funding for these two critical infrastructure projects that will benefit our customers,” EMWD Board President Phil Paule said. “We are beyond grateful to Congressmembers Calvert and Takano, as well as their staffs, for working with us throughout this process and recognizing the benefits that these projects will provide to their constituents.”

The Quail Valley Septic-to-Sewer funding will support further efforts to transition areas of the Quail Valley community in Menifee to a modernized sewer system. Failing septic systems in the community have resulted in wastewater being discharged into local ground and surface waters, creating a public health crisis.

EMWD has successfully completed the first phase of its Septic-to-Sewer conversion project in Quail Valley but is dependent on grant funding to expand the program.

The Mead Valley Booster Station replacement project will replace an aging booster station with an upgraded facility that will improve water supply reliability and improved fire flow for nearly 20,000 residents in the Mead Valley area. This facility also provides essential backbone infrastructure that supports Riverside County’s Unincorporated Communities Initiative, an effort intended to bring reliable services and infrastructure investments into the county’s disadvantaged unincorporated communities.

EMWD has a highly successful state and federal advocacy program that has helped generate more than $500 million in federal, state and local grants received in the past 15 years. These efforts help reduce the financial burden on current and future ratepayers while helping EMWD expand its water, wastewater and recycled water infrastructure.

“Many of the customers who will benefit from these two projects live in economically disadvantaged areas, and this funding will help EMWD reduce the financial burden on our customers,” Paule said. “We thank Congressmembers Calvert and Takano for their support in this process and for their commitment to helping EMWD provide safe, reliable and cost-effective services to the communities we serve.”