Alaska has been granted $1,157,000 as part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s $50.4 million in annual funding to states and territories for communities most in need of access to clean and safe drinking water.
The funds are earmarked for projects in underserved, small and disadvantaged communities to access and invest in water infrastructure and comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
The money may be spent on anything from household water quality testing to monitoring for unregulated drinking water contaminants. Funds may also support efforts to build the technical, financial, and managerial abilities of a water system’s operations and staff. Infrastructure projects—from transmission, distribution, and storage—that support drinking water quality improvements are also eligible for grant funding.
The Small, Underserved, and Disadvantaged Community grant program, established under the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, awards funding to states and territories on a non-competitive basis. EPA awards funding to states based on an allocation formula that includes factors for population below the poverty level, small water systems, and underserved communities.
