WOOD RIVER – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis District, and the City of Wood River, Illinois, recently entered into a cost-shared Project Partnership Agreement, or PPA, for sewer improvements included in the State Street Sewer Separation Project.
The $4.6 million project, of which $3.5 million is federal, will involve of separation of combined sewers, construction of a new storm water collection system, and expansion of existing storm water detention and pumping facilities. These improvements would not only benefit the numerous businesses, schools, civic centers and residences in the project area by reducing sewer backups, but it would also greatly reduce the amount of wastewater the city is required to treat, extending the operable life of the wastewater treatment facility.
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The State Street Sewer Separation project will be constructed in four phases and located primarily in partially in downtown or light industrial area as well as within a densely populated residential neighborhoods encompassing approximately 40 blocks within the city limits of Wood River. These neighborhoods experience street flooding, basement backups and yard flooding during storm events.
"As a civil engineer, I can appreciate the type of infrastructure that’s behind the scenes that citizens don’t see," said Col. Kevin Golinghorst, commander of the St. Louis District. "It is investments like this that may seem small in the federal government’s eyes but makes a big difference to the local community. Ultimately, this makes lives and livelihoods better.”
The St. Louis District’s environmental infrastructure programs assist communities with building, designing and/or restoring environmentally-friendly water supply and wastewater treatment systems. As of this year, the district has assisted more than 10 communities in eastern Missouri and western and southern Illinois in building or rehabilitating projects. The total cost for these projects is more than $55 million.
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