In an effort to provide incentives to good planning and management of wastewater issues, the Division of Water has devised a schedule of activities that fits into the overall watershed management schedule (see accompanying diagram).  Activities follow a logical progression of information gathering and assessment (What is the problem?) to prioritization (What do we address first?) to planning (What are we going to do?) to implementation. Each phase of the watershed management cycle is roughly one year.

The wastewater planning cycle has been developed to allow a county or city planning authority to develop wastewater plans with 604(b) grants during years three and four of the watershed management cycle in a given basin. Regional Wastewater Plans (201 Plans) must be revised at least once every 20 years.

The next step in the watershed management cycle would be to apply for low-interest loans from the State’s Revolving Loan Fund for wastewater infrastructure projects, including publicly owned treatment works and onsite sewage solutions during the fourth year of the watershed management cycle.

Nonpoint Source 319(h) grants are also available on a competitive basis for implementing on-site sewage solutions. These grants are federally funded at a 60-percent reimbursement rate. The grants are applied for on a yearly basis and the project duration can be no more than seven years.

Click here to see diagram.