Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Jim Webb and Mark R. Warner today announced that the Department of Agriculture will provide a $1.06 million grant to Carroll County Public Service Authority for safe drinking water and improvements to the water treatment system. Funding will be made available immediately under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), which the two Senators supported.  

“This project funding is welcome news for residents in Carroll County to ensure access to safe, dependable drinking water while also saving and creating jobs in the community,” said Senator Webb.

“We made significant progress in extending clean drinking water to thousands of Virginians in Southwest while I was governor,” said Senator Warner.  “I am pleased that we can continue this effort in Carroll County, creating jobs and improving the rural infrastructure even as we provide clean drinking water to hundreds of families.” 

Specifically, the rural development funding for Carroll County will be used to extend water transmission lines to a new regional water treatment plant and to enhance water quality and supply for the entire water system.  The line extension will serve an additional 317 residential homes and 5 businesses. After completion of the line extension, the entire water system will serve 2,139 residential homes and 197 businesses.

Residents and businesses are currently served by several public wells, which are inadequate in both quality and quantity.  The regional plant is currently under development and will provide Carroll County and two other entities with a safe, dependable source and supply of drinking water.

USDA Rural Development’s Water and Environmental Program provides loans and grants to ensure that necessary investments are made in water and wastewater infrastructure to deliver safe drinking water and protect the environment in rural areas. More information about USDA Rural Development can be found at www.rurdev.usda.gov.

More information about USDA’s Recovery Act efforts is available at www.usda.gov/recovery.  More information about the Federal government’s efforts on the Recovery Act is available at www.recovery.gov.

###