02.08.12

Delegation Announces Nearly $2 Million for Minot Sewer Project

Federal Resources From the Corps of Engineers Critical to Minot Recovery, Growth

Washington – Senators Kent Conrad and John Hoeven and Congressman Rick Berg today announced that $1.9 million has been allocated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to support the upgrade and expansion of the City of Minot sewer system. Local officials have stressed the importance of the project both to Minot’s recovery from last year’s flood and to handling the increase in population that has accompanied the energy boom in western North Dakota. 

“This infrastructure project is a key building block of the city's long-term disaster recovery effort,” the delegation said in a joint statement. “The funding secured today represents only the latest commitment from the federal government to help the people of Minot recover. These resources are critical to helping Minot shore up existing challenges in the system, and to allowing the city to accommodate its booming population.” 

The delegation pressed Corps officials last month to strongly consider the city of Minot’s request for federal assistance to expand and extend its sanitary sewer system south of the city. 

In letters to Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Jo-Ellen Darcy and Chief of Engineers Major General Merdith W.B. Temple, the delegation called for aid from the Corps of Engineers' Section 594 program to expand and extend its sanitary sewer system. That expansion not only addresses ongoing system failure issues, but also allows for future housing development, which is critical in the wake of this year’s record flooding.   

The delegation has been working with the city to secure as much federal support as possible to cover the total project cost. North Dakota has an ongoing Section 594 program, which was authorized and funded starting in FY08.   

The delegation also spoke with officials at Corps Headquarters and the Assistant Secretary's office on several occasions in recent weeks about the Minot project.