EPA gives South Dakota $62 million for drinking water infrastructure

The USA Environmental Safety Company introduced an allocation of $62 million to South Dakota to go in direction of upgrading consuming water infrastructure all through the state.

The cash, which is a part of a latest allocation of $6.5 billion from the Consuming Water State Revolving Fund for the complete nation, will primarily be utilized by communities to finish inventories of lead-containing water infrastructure and to plan the alternative of water strains that include lead.

A part of the funding may also go in direction of addressing contaminants in consuming water, similar to PFAs, which the EPA classifies as extensively used, long-term chemical compounds that may be ingested and trigger well being dangers.

Based on the KC Becker, the administrator for the EPA’s eighth area, which South Dakota is part of, lead pipes and contaminated consuming water are a hazard to each particular person well being and the atmosphere.

“[The] EPA is dedicated to defending the well being of all South Dakotans by making certain the water flowing into their faucets is reliably protected lengthy into the longer term,” Becker mentioned in a press launch. “This funding is a useful funding in public and environmental well being.”

Nationally, this funding is a part of the Biden-Harris administration’s aim to completely take away lead pipes all through the nation, in accordance with EPA Administrator Michael Regan. A majority of the cash allotted to South Dakota by way of the fund was supplied by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation, which handed Congress in 2021.

The funding quantities for every state are based mostly on the EPA’s most up-to-date Consuming Water Infrastructure Wants Survey and Evaluation. Based on the report, South Dakota has a projected whole of 4,141 lead service strains, which is 0.05% of the nationwide estimate. Colorado has probably the most lead strains of the eighth area, with a complete of 111,907, or 1.2% of the nationwide estimate.

Apart from South Dakota and Colorado, the EPA’s eighth area additionally consists of Montana, North Dakota, Utah, Wyoming and tribes situated in these states. All different states within the area additionally acquired $62 million, apart from Colorado, which acquired $91 million.

This funding for South Dakota is separate from the $3.6 million the EPA not too long ago allotted to South Dakota by way of the Clear Water State Revolving Fund.