SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) announced she has secured funding in the California budget to make emergency repairs to the City of Oxnard’s wastewater treatment plant. A recent assessment from the city’s Capital Improvement Projects state that 40% of the facility is in poor or very poor condition with 72% at a moderate, high or very high risk of failing.
“There is an urgent need to upgrade Oxnard’s wastewater treatment plant and this funding will help make repairs that are long overdue,” said Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin. “For several months I’ve worked with the City of Oxnard to figure out how the state could provide assistance for this critical project. After working with city staff, I’m proud to say that this is a great first step toward rehabilitating this public works service for the residents of Oxnard.”
A failure of the Oxnard wastewater treatment plant would be dangerous for public health and would cause damage to the environment. Funding is also vital to prevent spills or discharges that could result in fines from the Regional Water Quality Control Board and cause the delay in the day to day operations of the plant.
In mid-April, the City of Oxnard submitted their initial application for funding through the State Water Clean Revolving Program. Approval for this application will take several months with funding unavailable for at least another year. While the city is waiting for the funding for the long term projects, they need to make immediate, emergency repairs.
“I’m very pleased to see this local priority included in the budget and I want to thank my colleagues who also lent their support to the effort to get this funding, including Assemblymember Monique Limon and Senators Henry Stern and Hannah Beth Jackson,” concluded Assemblymember Irwin.
The budget is currently under consideration and will receive a vote in both the Assembly and the Senate later this week. Afterwards, it moves to the governor’s desk for his signature.
— Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin represents California’s 44th Assembly District, which includes the communities of Camarillo, Casa Conejo, Channel Islands Beach, El Rio, Lak Sherwood, Moorpark, Oak Park, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Rosa Valley, Thousand Oaks, and Westlake Village.
Assemblymember Irwin’s website: http://asmdc.org/irwin