releases: http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=401550
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
This data as json
| url | title | date | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=401550 | <span class="kicker">Smith helped expedite and increase reimbursement for crucial flood resiliency projects</span>EPA Recognizes South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority for Excellence | 2018-11-09 | 2018 | 2018-11 | Republican | House | NJ | Christopher Smith | S000522 | chrissmith.house.gov | legacy | Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) announced on Friday that the South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority (SMRSA) was honored by the EPA for excellence and innovation within the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program. I am pleased to announce that South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority has been recognized for its innovation in making its wastewater pump stations more resilient to large floods like in Hurricane Sandy, Smith, who in 2013 helped SMRSA obtain a much-needed increase in its reimbursement from FEMA for its project works after Superstorm Sandy. For instance, one of the pump stations in Lake Como had been submerged in five to six feet of water in Sandy, subjecting it to damaging corrosion. By constructing three flood-resilient pumping stationsincluding two stations in large trailers that could be removed from flooded areas in natural disasters to avoid damageSMRSA achieved a victory of innovation, Smith said. The third station replaced an older station that was located in a 100-year flood zone. The South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority (SMRSA) is honored to be amongthe Exceptional Projects' listed by the US EPA's Performance and Innovation in the SRF Creating Environmental Success (PISCES) program, stated Ryan R. Krause, P.E., C.M.E., Executive Director of the South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority. The SMRSA staff is driven by principles set by its' forward-thinking board of commissioners. As part of the SMRSA's asset management goals and objectives, it is hoped that these resiliency projects continue to mitigate future storm related damages and allow the SMRSA to invest monies in other critical assets while maintaining stable use rates. The South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority's pump stations were one of only 30 clean water infrastructure projects nationwide to be recognized by the EPA for excellence, as part of the agency's Clean Water State Revolving Fund which provides low-cost financing to communities for water quality infrastructure projects. Smith cosponsored the amendments to the Clean Water Act which created the fund. Infrastructure projects of state or local governments, public utilities, and private entities were recognized by the EPA's 2018 Performance and Innovation in the SRF Creating Environmental Success (PISCES) program. In 2013, Smith personally appealed to FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate to approve a 90 percent federal share for FEMA funding going to Jersey towns to pay for cleanup costsinstead of the initially planned 75 percent. Fugate approved the 90 percent ratio several weeks later. In November of 2013, the authority received a FEMA grant of over $2 million, a 90 percent share in the replacement of the Lake Como Water Pump Station destroyed by Superstorm Sandy; they had already received a FEMA grant of over $1 million to replace the Pitney Avenue Pump Station in Sea Girt. The South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority (SMRSA) provides sanitary sewer conveyance and treatment for Monmouth County's coastal towns of Belmar, Lake Como, Spring Lake, Spring Lake Heights, Sea Girt, Manasquan, Brielle, and Wall Township, all of which are in Congressman Smith's 4th Congressional District. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |