USDA, EPA, White House introduce wastewater initiative

Administration officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency and White House, Washington, D.C., traveled to Lowndes County, Alabama, to announce the Biden administration’s new wastewater infrastructure initiative for underserved rural communities Aug. 1-2.

Named the “Closing America’s Wastewater Access Gap Community Initiative,” the new initiative will be piloted in 11 communities across the country where residents lack basic wastewater management that is necessary to protect their health and the environment. EPA, USDA, the states of Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, and West Virginia and tribes will jointly leverage technical assistance resources to help historically underserved communities identify and pursue federal funding opportunities, including from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to address their wastewater needs and eliminate exposure to backyard sewage.

Together, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan and White House Infrastructure Coordinator Mitch Landrieu, along with Alabama Congresswoman Terri Sewell and environmental justice advocate Catherine Coleman Flowers, discussed solutions to longstanding environmental justice concerns for residents dealing with pollution impacts during their visit.

“Access to modern, reliable wastewater infrastructure is a necessity, and the Biden-Harris administration is committed to doing everything we can to ensure every family and every child in America has access to these vital services,” says Vilsack. “By combining USDA and EPA resources and taking advantage of the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we can restore to these communities a sense of economic vitality and social dignity that the people living there deserve.”

On Aug. 1, USDA and EPA staff hosted an afternoon press tour in Lowndes County, where media had an opportunity to see first-hand the pollution challenges in the community and speak with impacted residents.

On Aug. 2, Vilsack, Regan and Landrieu met with residents and community leaders during a tour of a home facing exposure to backyard sewage, hosted a community roundtable and held a press conference to announce this new partnership to deliver rural water infrastructure through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Read more about the USDA and EPA.