Recovery Act Jumpstarts Construction of Wastewater Treatment Plant in Lula, Georgia

(ATLANTA - Feb. 17, 2010) On the one-year anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the E.P.A. (EPA) and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources joined the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) to recognize an $8.5 million plan funded in part through the ARRA in Lula, Ga. The wastewater infrastructure plan is helping create green jobs, boost the local economy, enhance aging water infrastructure and protect human health and the environment.

"This plan is a prime example of how Recovery Act backing is helping local communities," said Acting E.P.A. Regional Administrator Stan Meiburg. "The construction of the new Lula Water Reclamation Treatment Facility is providing area residents with green jobs and will ultimately protect the environment when it is finished."

Lula officials broke ground in late October 2009 on the much-anticipated wastewater treatment plant, Hagan Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant, and construction began in December 2009. The plant will be a state-of-the-art, environmentally-friendly facility, made possible in part by ARRA funds. Currently, the maximum wastewater treatment for the plant is 82,000 gallons per day, and the new plant will increase up to 375,000 gallons per day. The plant's construction will create around 200 local jobs. It is anticipated that this plant will greatly enhance the water quality of the upper reaches of the Chattahoochee Basin which flows into Lake Lanier, the water supply for the city of Atlanta and surrounding communities.

One year ago, E.P.A. was entrusted with $7.2 billion dollars to invest in our economy --- to rebuild critical infrastructure in our communities; to invest in jobs that would put our citizens back to work and to rekindle a strong and thriving economy. In that short year, E.P.A. has worked diligently to move that money into the hands of our partners and to clear the way for rapid investments in construction, land reuse and redevelopment.

President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Feb. 17, and has directed the Recovery Act be implemented with unprecedented transparency and accountability. To that end, the American people can see how every dollar is being invested at www.Recovery.gov.

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