MWRA’s Local PipelineAssistance Program (LPAP) provides $250 million in interest-free loans ($25 million per year over a 10-year period) to MWRA water communities to perform local water main rehabilitation projects. MWRA financial assistance has been authorized through FY13.

Eligible project costs include:

• water main cleaning/lining
• replacement of unlined water pipes
• looping of dead-end mains
• replacement of lead service lines
• engineering design
• engineering services during construction

PROGRAM BENEFITS
The program goal is to aid communities in improving local water system distribution pipeline conditions to better maintain water quality and ensure the use of appropriate distribution system best management practices. This program is a critical component of MWRA’s Integrated Water Supply Improvement Program. It continues the effort of the two-year, $30 million "pilot" program that provided grants and loans for local distribution system rehabilitation projects during FY98 and FY99.

LPAP funds are allocated to member communities based on their percent share of unlined water pipe. MWRA partially supplied communities receive prorated shares based on their percentage use of MWRA water during FY95-98. Interest-free loans are repaid to MWRA over a ten-year period beginning one year after distribution of the funds.

Communities that complete rehabilitation of their unlined pipe during the 10-year program period are permitted to use remaining funds for other water quality improvements (e.g. replacement of lead services, looping of dead ends, water tank maintenance, etc.). Over the first five years of the program, $87.9 million has been distributed to fund 115 projects that have resulted in over 150 miles of local water pipeline rehabilitation.

To qualify for MWRA LPAP funds, a community must demonstrate that it has met or is in the process of meeting certain distribution system best management practices. Included in these practices are the following baseline requirements:

• Unidirectional Flushing Program Implementation;
• Distribution System Improvement Plan;
• Water Quality Testing Improvements; and,
• Cross Connection Control Program Development.

To help communities develop the distribution system maintenance programs listed above, MWRA has created the Community Technical Assistance Program. This program provides professional services on a task-order basis to assist communities in developing best management practices. In the fiscal year following completion of a Community Technical Assistance Program task order, the community reimburses MWRA through a "charge of special application" (interest-free).

Some files on this page require Adobe Acrobat Reader ®.
> Click here to download a free copy.

Updated March 1, 2007