EPA Press Office:

EPA Region 3 Awards Over $77M for Clean Water and Drinking Water Infrastructure Upgrades in Delaware

Made possible by President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda, new funding will help ensure communities have access to clean waterways and safe drinking water

PHILADELPHIA (November 30, 2023) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded Delaware $77,341,000 to support clean water efforts and to better deliver safe drinking water across the state. Most of this funding, $68,621,000, came from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) which is the largest federal investment in water infrastructure in our nation’s history. This BIL funding will supplement the $8,720,000 in FY 23 funding appropriated to Delaware’s Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs).

“These awards show that EPA is not just a regulator – but is a funder and partner,” said EPA’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz. “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ensures communities most in need and those grappling with emerging contaminants such as PFAS have access to funding that will deliver cleaner and safer water for generations to come.”

“As the single-largest water infrastructure investment in our nation’s history, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is helping deliver clean water access in Delaware,” said U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. “When crafting this law, we had projects in mind that were woefully in need of repair, including connecting, repairing, and replacing old sewer and water lines in New Castle, Kent, and Sussex Counties that local governments cannot afford to do on their own. Today’s infrastructure investment will not only help make Delaware more attractive to businesses but will also help us protect our waterways and natural beauty that make Delaware a great place to live and raise a family.”

“Clean water is a necessity for healthy, functional societies, and thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Delawareans can be confident they’ll always have access to this fundamental need,” said U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.). “I fought so hard as a key negotiator for the BIL because I knew this historic funding would provide so many Delawareans peace of mind when they turned on their taps.”

“One of the most fundamental responsibilities of government is to ensure access to clean water – a top priority of mine since coming to Congress,” said U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) “I’m proud to join the Biden Administration and Senators Carper and Coons in announcing this transformational funding for Delaware, made possible through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, that will strengthen the First State’s ability to deliver on our shared commitment to providing safe and clean water to our communities.”

EPA awards grants to states annually to capitalize the State Revolving Funds (SRFs) which provide low or no interest loans for water infrastructure projects. Delaware will use this money to help communities across the state fund necessary water projects that some borrowers may not have been able to afford otherwise.

“Every Delawarean deserves access to clean water,” said Josette Manning, Cabinet Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, which oversees the state’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. “We are grateful for these investments under President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to deliver safe drinking water across our state. We look forward to working on upgrades to Delaware’s water infrastructure with the municipalities and water companies who completed the application process for these funds through the Division of Public Health.”

“The BIL and base SRF funding from EPA will spur along Delaware’s initiative to provide sewer capabilities and drinking water to communities in need,” said the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Shawn M. Garvin. “These projects – which were already submitted and approved through our State Revolving Fund process – also signify environmental benefits by helping clean up our rivers, streams and bays in Delaware. It’s much-needed funding that will be directed in large portion to our state’s municipalities, counties and low-income and underserved communities.”

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law delivers more than $50 billion to EPA to improve our nation’s drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure - the single largest investment in water that the federal government has ever made. Learn more  about the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

For more information on intended projects for the Clean Water SRF funding in Delaware, please visit:  https://dnrec.delaware.gov/environmental-finance/revolving-fund/.

For more on the Drinking Water SRF funding in Delaware, please visit: https://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/hsp/dwsrfintendeduseplans.html.

For further information: r3press@epa.gov