03.19.13

Hoeven Announces $2 Million FEMA Grant to Aid Minot Flood Recovery

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has awarded a $2 million grant to the City of Minot to complete the first phase of a project to protect the city’s water treatment plant. Senators Hoeven and Conrad worked together last year to make sure the grant funding was authorized and appropriated.

“FEMA’s decision to award additional grants to assist with Minot’s continued flood recovery efforts reflects an ongoing commitment to ensuring that we’re meeting the needs of this community following the historic 2011 flooding,” Hoeven said. “This grant will play an important role in helping Minot’s ongoing work to recover from this severe flooding, and I remain focused on working on a federal level for disaster aid that will lend to ongoing efforts like this.”

The funding comes from FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) and will cover 75 percent of the total cost of the first phase of the water treatment plant protection project which will construct a floodwall to protect the city’s water treatment plant. The FEMA grant will help cover costs associated with the project’s design and engineering. An environmental assessment will also be conducted to provide FEMA with the technical information needed to determine the city’s potential eligibility for additional HMGP funding that could be allocated for the second phase of the project.

To date, more than $70 million in HMGP funding has been awarded to North Dakota to assist with recovery efforts resulting from 2011 flooding.