Batavia Receives $38M To Upgrade Wastewater Treatment Facility

BATAVIA, IL — The City of Batavia was awarded $38 million from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to upgrade its wastewater treatment facility, officials announced.

The city will use the funding to address excess flow and odor control issues, according to the agency. The rehabilitation project will include replacing existing clarifiers and an ultraviolet disinfection system. Crews will also install sanitary sewers and 14 manholes, a rotary drum thickener, six progressive cavity pumps and six submersible pumps.

"Clean water is a right — not a privilege," Governor JB Pritzker said in a statement. "And here in Illinois, we are utilizing every resource at our disposal to ensure our communities have the modernized and safe water infrastructure they deserve."

The Illinois EPA issued more than $571 million in water infrastructure loans to local governments and water districts through its State Revolving Fund program that provides low-interest rates — 1.24 percent in the 2023 fiscal year — to fund wastewater, stormwater and drinking water projects, according to a news release.

The SRF programs receive federal capitalization funding annually, which combines state matching funds, interest earnings, repayment money and periodic bond sale proceeds.

"Thanks to my administration's bipartisan Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan, we've increased state funding for the Illinois EPA's Water Pollution Control Loan Program and Public Water Supply Loan Program — providing low-interest loans for wastewater, stormwater, and drinking water projects, all while creating and supporting good-paying jobs," Pritzker said. "Here's to a cleaner and more sustainable future for all Illinoisans — no matter their zip code."