Sequoyah County Rural Water, Sewer, Gas and Solid Waste Management District Number 7 Receives $1,000,000 Water System Funding from the OWRB

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Rural Water, Sewer, Gas and Solid Waste Management District Number 7, Sequoyah County, Oklahoma (District) received approval for a $1,000,000 loan with 100% principal forgiveness on Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the District’s water infrastructure. Construction of upgrades and improvements to the water system will be financed by the Oklahoma Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF).

The District operates a water system and will use the funding to expand and improve its water storage capacity. The project includes constructing a new 240,000-gallon storage tank next to the existing 200,000-gallon tank and rehabilitating the current tank to extend its service life. These improvements will help ensure reliable water pressure and strengthen overall system resilience. All necessary equipment and related components will be included to complete the project.

Lori Johnson, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the District’s customers will save an estimated $1,637,000 when compared to traditional financing.

“This drinking water infrastructure funding is great news for Sequoyah County. There is hardly anything more important than clean drinking water! We are so thankful,” said Rep. Jim Olsen, R-Roland.

Julie Cunningham, Executive Director of the OWRB, and Rob Singletary, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ), express their sincere appreciation to State Senator Tom Woods and Warren Hamilton and State Representatives Jim Olsen and Rick West for their support of the DWSRF program.

The DWSRF program is administered by the OWRB and ODEQ with partial funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The DWSRF program has provided approximately $2.4 billion in drinking water loans to provide communities with the resources necessary to maintain and improve the infrastructure that protects our valuable water resources statewide.

Since 1983, the Oklahoma Water Resources Board has approved over $8.6 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma

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Contacts:
Lori Johnson
Oklahoma Water Resources Board
Chief, Financial Assistance Division
(405) 530-8800
Lori.Johnson@owrb.ok.gov

Isaac Cornelson
Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality
(405) 702-8104
Isaac.Cornelson@deq.ok.gov