I have been working with the Town of St. Paul and with Russell and Wise County officials to secure federal funds for a new wastewater system that would serve the community of Castlewood in Russell County and additional customers in the portions of Wise County surrounding the Town of St. Paul. The homes and businesses in these areas currently rely on private septic systems, which are often unreliable. Publicly provided wastewater service will help attract new growth in the number of businesses and residents in these areas; however, before new public wastewater systems are constructed, the capacity at St. Paul’s regional wastewater treatment plant must be greatly increased to serve the additional customers.

Currently, the St. Paul wastewater treatment plant provides wastewater treatment for a total of 400 homes and businesses in the Town of St. Paul and has the capacity to treat 400,000 gallons of wastewater per day. With the benefit of the federal funds, the plant’s capacity will be increased to nearly 1 million gallons per day. This increase will enable the plant to serve up to 1,500 homes and 400 businesses in Wise and Russell Counties including the new Dominion Power Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center, which is currently under construction.

The total cost of the expansion of St. Paul’s wastewater treatment plant is more than $6.5 million. In addition to the $5,858,000 announced today, I am urging the Appalachian Regional Commission to provide final federal approval for a federal grant of $500,000, and the Virginia Tobacco Commission has provided $150,000. The LENOWISCO and Cumberland Plateau Planning District Commissions have provided the remaining funds necessary to bring the project to construction.

Now that the federal funding has been secured to increase the capacity of St. Paul’s wastewater treatment plant, I will continue to work with Russell County officials to secure the necessary federal funds to construct a new wastewater system for the residents and businesses of Castlewood. The County has submitted an application for federal funds with my strong support, and I will be urging the Rural Development Agency to provide that allocation of federal funding in addition to today’s provision of funds. 

Providing adequate and reliable wastewater services in Castlewood in Russell County and St. Paul and the surrounding areas of Wise County will provide new opportunities for business and residential growth in these areas. I am extremely pleased that the Rural Development Agency has, at my urging, provided these funds.

          There are several individuals who deserve our thanks today for their excellent work to secure funds to expand the Town of St. Paul’s wastewater treatment plant.

          I want to thank Travis Jackson, regional representative for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development Agency. Travis’ efforts are critical to securing funding for projects throughout the Ninth Congressional District. 

          I also want to thank Kyle Fletcher, Mayor of St. Paul, and the St. Paul Town Council for their leadership and foresight in pursuing expansion of the wastewater treatment plant.

          I would also like to thank Bud Phillips, who serves St. Paul in the Virginia House of Delegates, for his commitment and leadership on this project.

          I also want to thank Skip Skinner and the excellent staff at LENOWISCO Planning District Commission as well as Jim Baldwin and the excellent staff of the Cumberland Plateau Planning District Commission for their continuing efforts on behalf of Southwest Virginia residents. 

          The federal funding I am announcing today is the result of the Recovery Act approved by the Congress last year, with my strong support as well as the support of Senator Webb and Senator Warner. I want to thank our Senators at this time for their longstanding support of infrastructure projects in Southwest Virginia.

          Finally, I would like to thank my Project Manager Derek Lyall for his efforts to expand the availability of water and wastewater services across the Ninth Congressional District.

The federal funds announced today will enable a major expansion of St. Paul’s wastewater treatment plant, and, as a result, future wastewater systems can be constructed to serve Castlewood and parts of Wise County. I want to thank all here for their efforts on behalf of this project, and I will continue working with Russell County officials to secure federal funds for the next phase of this project.