Governor Pat Quinn has awarded a $250 million low-interest loan to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) to move forward with projects crucial for improving the water environment and protecting public health. Financed through the governor’s Illinois Clean Water Initiative (ICWI), the projects will create 2,000 construction-related jobs and support an additional 8,000 jobs in local communities.
Governor Quinn launched the $1 billion initiative in Oct. 2012 to help local governments overhaul aging drinking water and wastewater treatment plants and pipelines. The ICWI, which does not use any new state tax dollars, will create an estimated 28,500 jobs across Illinois.
“Today we are taking a big step forward to clean up Chicago area waterways and create thousands of good jobs,” Governor Quinn said. “We are committed to making Illinois a national leader in clean water, which will lay the foundation for a stronger economy for generations to come.”
Financing will be used for the Tunnel and Reservoir Plan pumping station, disinfection equipment at the Calumet and O’Brien Water Reclamation Plants, flood and pollution prevention projects, and resource recovery initiatives.
“The nutrient removal projects are aimed at resource recovery with a return on investment for our taxpayers,” said MWRD Board President Kathleen Therese Meany. “These processes are on the cutting edge of treatment technology and will transform the wastewater industry into a resource recovery enterprise.”
Learn more at http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&RecNum=10917.
Our water environment…Take it personally!
