$187 million in bonds to pay for Chesapeake Bay clean-up

Governor's Office News Release
Published: September 30, 2008

Read the news release below from the Governor’s Office

Governor Timothy M. Kaine today applauded the Virginia Resources Authority’s issuance of Clean Water Revolving Loan Fund Bonds to finance $187,566,687 in wastewater treatment upgrades statewide. 

The Series 2008 bonds will finance 10 projects in nine localities across Virginia. The majority of the projects will provide system upgrades to reduce nutrient pollution being discharged into tributaries that feed the Chesapeake Bay. This will have a positive impact on marine life and the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay.

“These below-market loans come on top of the $660 million my Administration has dedicated to cleaning up point-source pollution of the Bay,” Governor Kaine said. “It is vitally important that we continue our efforts to reduce these pollution sources that affect the Bay and its tributaries.”

Virginia, along with Maryland, Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are all signatories to the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement.
“Governor Kaine continues to place great emphasis on Bay clean-up, and he works especially closely with Maryland, EPA, and other Bay partners,” said Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources L. Preston Bryant, Jr. “We have always counted VRA’s work to finance localities’ wastewater treatment plant upgrades as integral to Virginia’s overall pollution-reduction funding strategies. Without VRA’s work, we would not be as far along as we are toward our Bay goals.”

In June, Virginia encouraged other Bay watershed states and the EPA to move up from 2011 to 2010 the EPA-led plan to establish for the Bay a “total maximum daily load” (a cap) on the amount of nutrient pollution that can flow into the Bay. Governor Kaine, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, and EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson will discuss the advanced date for the TMDL when the group meets this fall.

“Given Virginia’s leadership in moving more quickly on Bay clean-up plans, VRA expects to play an increasingly important role,” said VRA Executive Director Sheryl Bailey. “We want to be there for local governments to help them meet their financing needs in the most cost-effective way possible.”

Virginia Resources Authority partners with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to provide below-market rate loans for eligible local government projects.

“DEQ is very pleased to be a part of this team effort in providing a large amount of innovative and attractive financing to local governments for these important projects,” said David K. Paylor, Director of DEQ. “They will go a long way toward the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay and other state waters. We look forward to continuing this valued relationship with VRA in addressing the challenging water quality improvement objectives of the Commonwealth.”

These bonds will support improvements to wastewater treatment plants and associated infrastructure owned and operated by Arlington County, the Alexandria Sanitation Authority, the Fauquier County Water and Sanitation Authority/Marshall, the Fauquier County Water and Sanitation Authority/Remington, the Hampton Roads Sanitation District, the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Regional Sewer Authority, the City of Newport News, the Prince William County Service Authority, Stafford County, and the Western Virginia Water Authority.

The largest project investment—$50 million – will go to Arlington County for continued upgrades to its Water Pollution Control Plant. Larry Slattery, chief of the County’s Water Pollution Control Bureau, said this is a clear example of the good things that can happen when many sectors of government work together to address long-term challenges. “The upgrades will continue to reduce our nitrogen output which will directly impact the health of the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay in a positive manner. And that’s good news for the environment, for fish and wildlife, and for all those who enjoy the Commonwealth’s abundant natural resources. This is a result of many years of visionary and cooperative efforts by the Arlington County Board, the VRA, and DEQ.”

VRA is also a sound financial investment. The Clean Water Bonds maintain a Moody’s Aaa bond rating, a Standard and Poor’s AAA rating, and a Fitch AAA rating.

For more information on the Virginia Resources Authority, visit its website at http://www.virginiaresources.org

One of the projects is in the Roanoke Valley:

Western Virginia Water Authority - The project includes several components to address a Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO) issue. Individually and collectively, these projects will directly help reduce pollutants from entering the Roanoke River through a reduction in sewer overflows and abatement of known inflow and infiltration problems.