Learn about Oklahoma Water Resources Board, including Featured News, Projects, The Team, Our Funding Programs, and Our Mission Statement and Strategic Narrative.
The OWRB's mission is to protect and enhance the quality of life for Oklahomans by managing and improving the state’s water resources to ensure clean and reliable water supplies, a strong economy, and a safe and healthy environment.
Our primary duties and responsibilities include water use appropriation and permitting, water quality monitoring and standards, financial assistance for water/wastewater systems, dam safety, floodplain management, water supply planning, technical studies and research, and water resource mapping.
Tishomingo Municipal Authority receives $190,000 loan from OWRB
The Tishomingo Municipal Authority (Authority) received approval for a $190,000 loan Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s wastewater infrastructure. The study and planning upgrades and improvements to the wastewater system will be financed by a 100% principal forgiveness loan through the Oklahoma Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) along with a $75,000 grant from the Chickasaw Nation.
The Authority will utilize the proceeds to conduct a Sanitary Sewer Evaluation Survey (SSES) to identify inflow and infiltration issues which need to be addressed. This survey will then be analyzed by a consulting engineer for system upgrade recommendations. Recommended improvements, based on the findings from the study, will help to reduce the amount of inflow and infiltration in the system thereby reducing the unintended flows to the wastewater treatment facility.
Joe Freeman, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the Authority’s customers will save an estimated $247,900 compared to traditional financing.
Caddo Public Works Authority receives $117,560 loan from OWRB
The Caddo Public Works Authority (Authority) received approval for a $117,560 loan Tuesday from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s wastewater infrastructure. The study and planning upgrades and improvements to the wastewater system will be financed by a 100% principal forgiveness loan through the Oklahoma Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).
The Authority will utilize the proceeds to conduct a Sanitary Sewer Evaluation Survey (SSES) to identify areas of the sewer system within the Authority which need to be addressed. This survey will then be analyzed by a consulting engineer for system upgrade recommendations. Recommended improvements, based on the findings from the study, will help to reduce the amount of inflow and infiltration in the system thereby reducing the unintended flows to the wastewater treatment facility.
Joe Freeman, chief of the OWRB’s Financial Assistance Division, calculated that the Authority’s customers will save an estimated $162,430 compared to traditional financing.
The Dewar Public Works Authority received approval for a $1,637,000 loan June 15th, 2021 from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to improve the Authority’s wastewater infrastructure. Construction of upgrades and improvements to the wastewater system will be financed by the Oklahoma Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) where $200,000 of the loan will be in the form of loan forgiveness along with $931,409 from Indian Health Services.
The Authority will utilize the proceeds to retrofit the existing facility and for the construction of a flow-through lagoon system with a cascade aerator. These improvements will address unintended flows to the wastewater treatment plant and protecting the waters that enter Coal Creek and Henryetta Lake.
Vice Mayor of Dewar, Gary McGowin, stated, “I would like to express appreciation to the Board and staff for providing low interest rate financing to make sewer system improvements for the benefit of Dewar.”
As a condition of a federal agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the OWRB, as administrator of the CWSRF, must submit an annual plan for the use of federal funds awarded and a strategy for managing the program in accordance with the CWA Section 606(c). The following document is the State of Oklahoma’s CWSRF Intended Use Plan (IUP) for funds to be made available during SFY 2022.
For the full report, click Oklahoma's SFY2022 CWSRF Intended Use Plan.
This Annual Report to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) details Oklahoma's Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and its financial performance and programmatic highlights. This report reviews the allotment of the CWSRF Report to Congress, environmental benefits of Oklahoma's CWSRF Green Infrastructure Projects and best practices in Green Infrastructure and Sustainability along with an outline of any additional subsidization made available for the applicable fiscal year.
For the full report, click Oklahoma's SFY2020 CWSRF Annual Report.
The Cameron Public Works Authority (Authority) located in LeFlore County serves 149 sewer customers and 168 water customers. According to the 2010 U.S Census the population was 302. The community is a small community and met the criteria to receive 100% loan forgiveness from the CWSRF Additional Subsidization for planning and design.
The Authority’s current treatment process is a lagoon system with selective discharge. The design average daily flow is 0.055 MGD, and the receiving stream is an unnamed tributary to the Poteau River which is listed on the 303(d) list for silver, turbidity, cadmium, copper, selenium, and lead.
The proposed project is for planning and design for rehabilitation of the existing sewer system including the collection system, lift station, sewer lagoon, and chlorine/dechlorinating basin in order to address the violations listed in the Consent Order. These enhancements will increase the treatment capacity and improve the effluent being discharged into the Poteau River.
Carney Public Utilities Authority (Authority) located in Lincoln County serves 172 sewer customers and 273 water customers. According to the 2010 U.S. Census the population was 647. This community is small and fits the criteria of our principal forgiveness program. The project is Phase II of principal forgiveness funds for the construction portion of a project that received 100% principal forgiveness for Phase I planning and design.
The water supply system has water meters that no longer provide accurate readings resulting in apparent water loss to the Authority. The wastewater collection system has problems with inflow and infiltration (I/I), which often cause the system to exceed its capacity and result in sanitary sewer overflows.
The Authority’s current treatment process is a lagoon with sand filter system which has a Design Average Daily Flow of 0.105 MGD. The receiving stream is an unnamed tributary to Bell Cow Creek which is on the 303(d) list for enterococcus.
The Authority will utilize the proceeds of the CWSRF loan to acquire and install Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) water meters; replace 4,000 linear feet of eight (8) inch sanitary sewer line, and fifteen (15) manholes. A portion of this project focuses on water conservation and efficiency by identifying water loss in Carney’s system. These improvements could lead to increased water supply reliability by providing the system officials with a better understanding of potential vulnerabilities. Additional improvements to the collection system will reduce I/I which will reduce unintended flows to the wastewater treatment plant. Finally, the project will help meet Oklahoma’s Water for 2060 goals.
The Oklahoma Water Resources Board's (OWRB) Financial Assistance Division assists communities in their efforts to protect and conserve Oklahoma's water resources for current and future generations through cost-effective financial products, technical assistance, and high quality customer service. To find more information, please visit here.
Loan Programs:
The CWSRF loan program is funded by EPA capitalization grants, state matching funds, and bonds. The CWSRF is administered by the OWRB. The interest rate is approximately 60% of AAA market rate with 40% savings through federal subsidy.
The DWSRF loan program is funded by EPA capitalization grants, state matching funds, loan repayments, investment earnings, and bonds. The DWSRF is co-administered by the OWRB and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ). The interest rate is approximately 70% of AAA market rate with 30% savings through federal subsidy.
The OWRB's state loan revenue bond program offers long term, variable interest rate funding with a fixed rate conversion option. This low interest rate is based on the OWRB's AAA credit rating.
Grant Programs:
The Emergency Grant Program is a point-based program designed to assist communities facing crises which threaten life, health, or property.
The REAP Grant Program is a point-based program designed to assist smaller communities that lack sufficient fiscal capacity. Cities, towns, and municipalities with a population less than 1,750 are given priority. Rural water and/or sewer districts with less than 525 non-pasture customers are also given priority.
