New York approves $665 million in water infrastructure funding, including $450 million for NYC

Water infrastructure across the Empire State will be upgraded thanks to hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding. 

The Board of Directors of the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) has approved $665 million for water infrastructure improvements statewide. This approval gives municipalities access to low-interest-rate financing – atop previously announced grants – to begin work such as upgrading treatment facilities to remove emerging contaminants from drinking water. 

Emerging contaminants include pharmaceuticals and personal care products, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. 

The New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority received $454.3 million in financing from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) for the planning, design and construction of projects related to the Wards Island, Bowery Bay, Jamaica, Coney Island, Red Hook and Owls Head water resource recovery facilities.  

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The financing also supports the Gowanus Canal combined sewer overflow abatement project and improvements to several pumping stations. 

The board approved grants and financing for local governments through the CWSRF and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (DWSRF), as well as previously announced grants under the Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) program and funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law BIL.  

In addition to the New York City funding, approved clean water projects include: 

• Albany Municipal Water Finance Authority: $1.7 million grant and $1.7 million in interest-free financing from the BIL for the planning, design and construction of stormwater improvements. 

• City of Amsterdam: $8.8 million grant, $7 million in interest-free financing from BIL and a $4.3 million WIIA grant for wastewater treatment plant improvements. 

• Village of Holley: $2.1 million in interest-free and $800,000 in market-rate financing from the CWSRF, plus a $400,000 WIIA grant for wastewater treatment plant upgrades and disinfection improvements. 

• City of Kingston: $4.1 million BIL grant for wastewater treatment plant and outfall upgrades. 

• Oneida County: $10.5 million grant, $7.7 million in interest-free and $800,000 in market-rate financing from BIL, $800,000 in interest-free financing from the CWSRF and a $6.6 million WIIA grant for a collection system rehabilitation project. 

• Town of Poughkeepsie: $3.3 million in interest-free and $7.7 million in market-rate financing from the CWSRF, plus a $700,000 WIIA grant for the relocation of a pump station. 

• Village of Sherburne: $8.9 million grant, $9.9 million in interest-free financing from BIL, $10 million in market-rate financing from the CWSRF, and an $8.7 million WIIA grant for wastewater treatment plant upgrades. 

• Village of Tivoli: $6.7 million grant and $9 million in interest-free financing from BIL for improvements to the wastewater collection and treatment system. 

New York State’s continuing investments in water infrastructure provided more than $2.2 billion in financial support from the EFC for local projects in Fiscal Year 2024 alone. With an additional $500 million for clean water infrastructure in the FY24 budget, the state will have invested a total of $5.5 billion in such projects since 2017. 

Projects focused on drinking-water announced by the EFC include: 

• Town of Beekmantown: $800,000 in market-rate financing from the DWSRF and a $3 million WIIA grant for locating new wells, developing 2-3 groundwater wells, building a water treatment plant with chemical disinfection and installing transmission mains to connect the wells to the plant. 

• Carle Place Water District: $4.6 million WIIA grant for installing two treatment systems at Wells 3 and 4 to address PFOA and PFOS contamination. 

• Town of Elizabethtown: $1.8 million grant and $1.9 million in interest-free financing from the DWSRF for two new production wells, a water treatment plant with chemical disinfection, rehabilitation of an existing treatment plant and other system upgrades. 

• Village of Endicott: $4.5 million in interest-free and $9 million in market-rate financing from the DWSRF, plus a $5 million WIIA grant for additional water treatment to remove iron, manganese and 1,4-dioxane contamination. Additionally, $2.9 million in interest-free financing from the DWSRF, plus two WIIA grants totaling $4.4 million, for developing a new water source to replace a contaminated one. 

• Village of Frankfort: $3.4 million in interest-free financing from the DWSRF and a $3 million WIIA grant for upgrades to the water distribution system and well site. 

• Village of Hamburg: $5 million WIIA grant for a new 1.25-million-gallon water storage tank, 6,000 feet of transmission mains and a new pump station. 

• Village of Mineola: $5 million WIIA grant for a new filtration system to remove PFOA and PFOS at Well No. 1. 

• Roslyn Water District: $3 million WIIA grant for a treatment system at Plant No. 5 to remove PFAS. 

• Suffolk County Water Authority: $1.9 million BIL grant for installing 21,000 feet of water main in the Hamlet of Calverton. 

The board also took steps to ensure the continued affordability of existing projects by approving $24 million in long-term, interest-free financing for projects in the City of Kingston, Town of Rockland, and the Villages of Copenhagen, Hammondsport, Ilion and South Glen Falls. 

Short-term financing is usually used to cover the design and construction phases of projects, with this financing typically converted into long-term financing for up to 30 years. This provides significant interest savings compared to private lending options.  

Along with grants administered by the EFC, this refinancing is expected to save residents around $38 million based on current market conditions. 

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Photo courtesy Lance Cheung