East Lansing, Meridian get large state grant to improve drinking water system
A $2 million water grant, the largest in a recent round of statewide funding, will help East Lansing and Meridian Township to upgrade a water main and change filtration.
The grant to the East Lansing - Meridian Water and Sewer Authority will go toward a $9.1 million project that includes a water main upgrade on Okemos Road between Haslett and Lake Lansing roads and changing the water system's lagoon system into a closed filtration system.
Construction on the water main is expected to start in October.
Backwash from filtration goes into an open lagoon now. The project will make it a closed system of filtration and eliminates the chance of surface water contamination, said Clyde Dugan, manager of the authority.
While the potential contamination is now kept at bay with treatments, the closed filtration system will mean less regulatory work for the system and is better for the environment, he said.
The changes won't really be noticed by customers, Dugan said, adding there shouldn't be any taste differences.
The filtration change should be finished by June 2023 and the water main could be done by the end of the year, he said.
Another grant of $403,000 was awarded to the city of Owosso to replace a water main along Center Street and for the rehabilitation of a standpipe and elevated storage tower.
The two projects were among the last five to be awarded grants through the Drinking Water Infrastructure grants, part of the Clean Water Act.
The Drinking Water Infrastructure grants are part of larger projects that are funded through the State Revolving Fund. The grants pay about 30% of the projects and the rest can be funded through low-interest state loans.
More than 100 projects statewide applied for the grant funding and the most recent round of grants was the last of 28 projects to be awarded funding totaling around $35 million, according to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.
Other water grants announced this week:
City of Ann Arbor: $1.4 million to replace a 1949 pump station
Village of Shelby: $621,000 for projects
Benton Charter Township: $690,000 to remove or reduce contaminants
City of Romulus: $456,000 to update processes and work on problems including lead lines
The grant money for most of the projects comes from $1.9 billion that was part of the larger Building Michigan Together plan. Previously the fund has spent $341 million on replacing lead lines, $40 million on contaminants and $20 million on better water management, according to the office of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Mike Ellis lives in the Greater Lansing area. He's a Michigan native, recently back to the state after 14 years as a journalist in South Carolina. Let him know what he missed, he'd be glad to treat you to coffee because he's always looking for the next story that people need to read. Please send any tips or feedback to mellis@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: East Lansing, Meridian get large state grant to improve drinking water system
