Six Southeast Ohio Counties Receive Ohio EPA Loans to Repair, Replace Household Sewage Treatment Systems

-

WASHINGTON, D.C. – October 25, 2013 – (RealEstateRama) — Ohio EPA has issued individual $56,000 loans to Hocking, Meigs, Morgan, Morrow, Muskingum and Perry counties to help their residents pay for household sewage treatment system repair and replacement. The loans are being issued from the Ohio Water Pollution Control Loan Fund (WPCLF) and will help each county save an estimated $87,736-$90,288 over the 20-year lives of the loans when compared to the market rate.

U.S. Media Search Engine
Ohio EPA in National News

Through their respective counties, homeowners are then eligible to receive this WPCLF funding with either 85 percent or 100 percent in principal forgiveness (which does not need to be repaid) for the cost to repair or replace their failing on-site systems. The percentage is dependent on the number of people living in the home and the household income.

The projects will benefit low-income residents by eliminating their failing on-site systems at an affordable cost. In addition to correcting potential health concerns associated with the failing systems, local water quality and aquatic life will benefit from the improvements.

Since 1989, Ohio’s Water Pollution Control Loan Fund has awarded more than $6 billion in below-market financing for sewage treatment plant upgrades and other water quality improvement projects. The program has saved borrowers more than $1.1 billion in interest. Low-interest loans also have been provided to municipalities and individuals for agricultural best management practices; home sewage system improvements; contaminated site cleanup; and landfill closures. Additionally, the WPCLF can provide technical assistance to public wastewater systems in a variety of areas from the planning, design and construction of improvements to enhancing the technical, managerial and financial capacity of these systems.

The loan program is managed by Ohio EPA’s Division of Environmental and Financial Assistance, with assistance from the Ohio Water Development Authority. Ohio EPA is responsible for program development and implementation, individual project coordination, and environmental reviews of projects seeking funds. The Ohio Water Development Authority provides financial management of the fund.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.

MEDIA CONTACT: Erin Strouse
CITIZEN CONTACT: Amber Finkelstein
PUBLIC INTEREST CENTER: (614) 644-2160

SHARE
Avatar

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) is a state agency whose goal is to protect the environment and public health by ensuring compliance with environmental laws. Those laws and related rules outline Ohio EPA’s authority—what we can and can’t do, and what things we can consider when making decisions about facility operations.

Contact:

Physical Address:
Ohio EPA
50 West Town Street, Suite 700
Columbus, Ohio 43215

Phone: (614) 644-2160
Fax:   (614) 644-2737

Media Contact:
Mike Settles
Phone: (614) 644-2160

Previous articleDemolition Grant Program Update Shows 6,000 Abandoned Properties Demolished
Next article15th Annual Ohio Housing Conference Explores Housing Strategies in a Challenging Economic Climate