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The Copan Public Works Authority (Authority) received approval Tuesday for a $127,655 loan from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s wastewater infrastructure.  The planning and design upgrades will be financed in full via a principal forgiveness loan through the Oklahoma Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).

Cole Perryman with OWRB said the Authority will use the funds for planning and design of sewer system rehabilitation which will determine areas where inflow and infiltration are an issue. A reduction of these issues will help prevent unwanted contaminants from entering Copan Lake and the Little Caney River while reducing unintended flows to the wastewater treatment plant. He said they're grateful to State Senator Julie Daniels and State Representative Judd Strom for their support of our financial assistance programs.

Joe Freeman, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the Authority’s customers will save an estimated $158,955 over the life of the loan compared to traditional financing.

The CWSRF program is administered by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board with partial funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The CWSRF program has provided approximately $1.8 billion in water quality loans to provide communities 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 $5.09 billion in loans and grants for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements throughout Oklahoma.

OWRB also awarded a $99,500 Rural Economic Action Plan (REAP) grant in December 2020. More on that story can be found here.