PROVIDENCE — Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank announced on Monday, May 20, it had issued a $41,630,000 Clean Water State Revolving Fund bond, with $5,200,000 in principal forgiveness stemming from the reimbursements through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

The proceeds of the bonds will help finance the ongoing construction of the Narragansett Bay Commission’s Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Phase III project and other system infrastructure connecting its Pawtucket location to its Bucklin Point plant located in East Providence at Island and Campbell Avenues just off Roger Williams Avenue. The NBC is the water/sewer provider for the northern part of East Providence, the Rumford section.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, colloquially known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15, 2021. Its authorizations include an allocation of $50 billion to the United States Environmental Protection Agency for improving the nation’s drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure. It also includes provisions related to "Build America, Buy America," which ensures that infrastructure projects use domestically produced iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials. The NBC overflow tunnel project meets both criteria.

“Our CSO project would not have been possible without the low-cost financing provided by the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank,” said Narragansett Bay Commission Executive Director Laurie Horridge, Esq. “We thank the Bank for their decades-long partnership and for this latest $41 million Clean Water State Revolving Fund financing for CSO Phase III work, and other upgrades to our system infrastructure.”

The 30-year bond has borrowing rate of 3.93% and is rated AAA by S&P and Fitch Ratings.

“For the past 20 years, Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank has been providing low-cost financing for the Narragansett Bay Commission’s CSO project, and we’re pleased to continue that partnership with this $41 million bond to support Phase III construction and other system upgrade projects,” said Bill Fazioli, the East Providence resident who is in his second year as the RIIB Executive Director.

He continued, “The CSO is one of the largest infrastructure projects in Rhode Island’s history and has produced dramatic improvements in the health of Narragansett Bay. It is an excellent example of what is possible through investing in infrastructure and utilizing Rhode Island’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund program.”

Since 2003, the Narragansett Bay Commission has used the RIIB’s low-cost Clean Water State Revolving Fund program to complete Phase I and Phase II of the CSO project, diverting more than 1 billion gallons of combined water and wastewater that would have otherwise gone straight into Narragansett Bay, and is now treated at their Field’s Point Wastewater Treatment Facility each year. The project has helped to dramatically improve the health of Narragansett Bay.

Phase III of the Combined Sewer Overflow project, currently under construction, is a 2.2-mile long, 30-foot diameter tunnel running underneath Pawtucket and Central Falls that is expected to reduce overflow volumes by 98 percent and treat stormwater before it flows into Narragansett Bay.

According to Fazioli, the tunnel starts on School Street in Pawtucket and will eventually lead to the Bucklin Point treatment site. The tunnel will store the stormwater runoff so it can be treated before being discharged into the Seekonk River.

“By utilizing the Bank’s capital and below market rate financing on this bond issue, Narragansett Bay Commission was able to save $24 million versus borrowing via traditional options,” said RIIB Board Chair Vahid Ownjazayeri. “Including this bond, Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank has provided approximately $900 million in Clean Water State Revolving Fund financing for Narragansett Bay Commission clean water infrastructure investments. We are proud of this long-term partnership, which demonstrates the power public infrastructure investment can have in improving public health and the health of our environment.”