Roland M. Arsenault, superintendent of the Rumford/Mexico Sewage District, speaks Monday about the impact of a $1 million grant to his district. Seated, from left, are Gov. Janet Mills, Rumford Select Board Chairman Christopher Brennick and Director of Water Quality Brian Kavanah of Department of Environmental Protection. Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times

RUMFORD — Gov. Janet Mills announced Monday that she is awarding $22 million through her Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan to 20 wastewater treatment facilities serving 27 communities across Maine to accelerate vital wastewater infrastructure projects.

The announcement of the one-time grants, administered by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, was made from the Rumford Falls Auditorium at Town Hall. Included was a $1 million grant to the Rumford-Mexico Sewerage District to make significant improvements to its wastewater treatment facility. Upgrades to the facility will preserve service to the communities of Rumford, Mexico and Dixfield, while also reducing discharges into the Androscoggin River.

Gov. Janet Mills announces Monday that she is awarding $22 million to 20 wastewater treatment facilities in the state to accelerate vital wastewater infrastructure projects. Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times

“Over the next four years, these funds will be put to use and these communities will use the money to repair and replace wastewater infrastructure, and improve their operations and reliability and resiliency,” Mills said. “They will last a lot longer.

“Maintaining our water and sewer infrastructure across the state of Maine is critical to preserving our clean water, to protecting public health, and to reducing costs for taxpayers.”

Roland M. Arsenault, superintendent of the Rumford-Mexico Sewerage District, said the district is undertaking a “long overdue” $30 million upgrade of its main wastewater treatment facility and pump station, located in Mexico.

The district serves the wastewater collection and treatment needs of the Rumford, Mexico and Dixfield, and receives septage from all of western Maine.

“Grant monies are extremely important for this project as the three-town area has a greater than 50 percent low to moderate income population, and to fund a project of this magnitude solely from lending institutions would be a huge financial burden to the three communities,” said Arsenault.

“These funds will also ensure that the district is able to help protect the Androscoggin River watershed and to provide affordable and reliable wastewater services to the residents and businesses of the Rumford, Mexico and Dixfield communities well into the future,” he added.

Melanie Loyzim, commissioner of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, emphasized the importance of Maine’s clean water as part of a bigger picture.

“Maintaining the high quality of Maine’s water is essential to the “Maine brand,” our quality of life, a healthy environment and a strong economy,” said Loyzim. “The funding of these clean water projects through the Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan will ensure Maine will continue to be known for having some of the best water quality in the country.”

In total, the grants will support 22 wastewater projects around Maine over the next four years, including projects that repair and replace wastewater infrastructure to improve operations, reliability, resiliency to climate effects, environmental impacts and economic development.

The other awards are as follows:
• Anson-Madison Sanitary District: $2.278 million
• Biddeford: $1 million
• Greater Augusta Utility District (2 awards): $2 million
• Calais: $2 million
• Ellsworth: $2 million
• Eagle Lake Water & Sewer District: $1 million
• Hartland: $1 million
• Houlton Water Company: $1 million
• Livermore Falls: $1 million
• Loring Development Authority: $167,950
• Mapleton Sewer District: $917,235
• Millinocket: $800,000
• Old Town: $733,020
• Pittsfield: $498,210
• Rockport: $1 million
• Stonington Sanitary District (2 awards): $403,510
• Van Buren: $463,509
• Machias: $893,589
• Winterport Water District: $553,746

Mills said these funds are in addition to $20 million in grant funding to 13 communities across Maine she announced last week to make investments in local infrastructure projects, including wastewater infrastructure, to improve their resilience to effects of climate change, such as flooding, rising sea levels and more extreme storms.

Following her visit to Rumford, Mills toured the historic Bethel Inn Resort with Brad Jerome, the inn’s director of sales and marketing. She also toured The Gem Theater, which is a coworking space, in Bethel with co-owners Wade Kavanaugh and Beth Weisberger, and visited the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum in Bethel.