Local News

Morton pleased Omak gets more state funding to replace aging sewer system

By NCBI
Apr 04, 2012

State Sen. Bob Morton, R-Kettle Falls, said today he was pleased to learn recently that the state Department of Ecology has awarded the City of Omak two low-interest loans to help replace its aging sewer system, part of which collapsed in March 2011. The loans are for 20 years at a fixed interest rate of 2.6 percent.

Here are the specifics of the two loans:

Sewer System Improvement Project: $1,770,000
The city will use the money for planning, permitting and engineering design for replacement of failing concrete interceptor, trunk and collector sewers as well as deteriorated side sewers and old brick manholes.

Dewberry Sewer Replacement Project: $1,707,000
The city will use the money to replace 11,000 feet of 50- to 80-year-old concrete interceptor, trunk and collector sewers, 6,300 feet of deteriorated side sewer pipe and 59 brick manholes.

The loans come from the Washington State Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund authorized under the federal Clean Water Act.

The 2011-13 capital budget adopted by the Legislature last May provided a $7 million low-interest construction loan from the Public Works Trust Fund to replace the deteriorated concrete sewer system components at East Dewberry Avenue and west of the Okanogan River in downtown Omak to the city's wastewater treatment facility.

"Last year's funding was in response to an emergency, these new loans are a hedge against another collapse," Morton said.



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