Department of Natural Resources awards $100 million to Kansas City

JEFFERSON CITY, MO, MAY 11, 2021 - The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has awarded $100 million in financial assistance to the City of Kansas City for upgrades to its Blue River Biosolids Wastewater Facility, located at 7300 Hawthorne, near Interstate 435 and Front Street. The project is estimated to cost $140 million and is expected to be completed by January 2024.

The facility receives waste sludge from three other Kansas City wastewater treatment plants. The sludge is then incinerated and disposed of in landfills. The improvement project includes replacing the aging incinerators with a thermal hydrolysis process, as well as rehabilitating the existing facility.

The thermal hydrolysis process converts waste into clean, useful products, including fertilizer for farms and gardens and biogas to produce electrical power and heat. The new system will be better for the environment, enabling the city to eliminate the production of harmful air pollutants and ash that had to be disposed of in landfills. In addition, thermal hydrolysis provides the city with the most cost-effective treatment solution available.  

The funding for the project consists of a $100 million low-interest loan through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (SRF). The funding provided by the department is estimated to save the city’s ratepayers $25 million in interest over the loan’s 20 year-term.

“Keeping Missouri’s infrastructure strong and resilient has always been one of our top priorities,” said Governor Mike Parson. “However, we have to do that one community at a time, which takes a lot of collaboration and creative problem solving at both the local and state levels. Finding manageable project funding is often a challenge for our communities, so it’s important that we provide viable solutions like the Clean Water State Revolving Fund.”

“Grants and low-interest loans through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund help Missouri communities with water and wastewater treatment system projects that they might not have been able to undertake otherwise,” said Carol Comer, director of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. “We are here to help Missouri communities plan and fund infrastructure improvements that will help protect public and environmental health and provide local economic benefits as well.”

“The City of Kansas City is pleased to participate in the State of Missouri’s SRF program as it will ensure that our wastewater utility gets the best possible financing for this critical infrastructure project,” said KC Water Director Terry Leeds.

The Clean Water State Revolving Fund finances improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, sewer collection system rehabilitation and extensions, and combined sewer overflow corrections, as well as security, efficiency and conservation measures. Communities that borrow from the fund benefit from the below-market interest rate and from expert guidance provided throughout their project by a department project manager.

The department is committed to assisting Missouri communities with water and wastewater infrastructure improvement projects. Through its Financial Assistance Center, the department provides funding opportunities for communities with water quality, wastewater and drinking water infrastructure needs. This project will be funded wholly or in part with monies received from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

For more information on wastewater and drinking water funding opportunities, visit dnr.mo.gov/env/wpp/srf/index.html.

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