Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today (Monday) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making investments to improve water and waste infrastructure for 168 small towns across the country, including the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The investment, totaling $283 million, is made through USDA Rural Development’s Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program, which provides assistance and financing to develop drinking water and waste disposal systems for communities with 10,000 or fewer residents.

Funding for each project announced today (Monday) is contingent upon the recipient meeting the terms of the loan, grant or loan/grant agreement. In southwest Iowa, the Fremont County City of Thurman received a $152,000 loan and a $144,000 grant, for water system improvements.

Since 2009, USDA Rural Development (@USDARD) has invested $13.5 billion for 5,739 water and waste infrastructure projects, benefiting 19.1 million rural residents.