Investments will improve water quality, protect seaside resorts, reduce flood risk
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a loan for $9 million to Uruguay to support the completion of sanitation and drainage works in the town of Ciudad de la Costa, Montevideo’s main urban satellite.
The investments are part of the Integrated Sanitation Program for Ciudad de la Costa, which is being carried out by the National Water Supply and Sanitation Administration (OSE) together with road works executed by the Municipality of Canelones.The program was initiated with the help of an IDB loan for $43 million and counterpart funding by the Uruguay government for $39.5 million.
Since its start in 2009, the program’s budget has been affected by sharp increases in construction costs and the appreciation of the Uruguayan peso against the US dollar. The new IDB loan and additional resources amounting to $15.4 million from the Uruguayan government are expected to enable the program to meet its original goals.
Projects funded by the program include the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant and pump station, expansion of the sewage and storm drainage network in section of Ciudad de la Costa, and urban street paving.
Under the program, OSE will connect 2,483 homes to the sewerage system, thereby reducing the use of sanitation trucks for transporting sewage to the existing treatment plant.This in turn will improve the quality of water in streams and on beaches in the municipality.
Investments in storm water infrastructure road works will reduce the risk of flooding in 10 vulnerable areas, which will directly benefit about 11,000 people.
The program is also funding institutional strengthening for OSE related to organizational systems and methods, training, infrastructure maintenance plans for storm drainage and roads infrastructure roads, cadastral activities, and billing systems.
The loan was extended for a term of 25 years, with a 3 ½-year grace period and a variable interest rate.