The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) has finalized a $19 million State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan with 100% principal forgiveness for the City of Mulberry to improve the resilience of its wastewater infrastructure following impacts from Hurricane Milton.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the agreement is the first loan issued under the 2025 Supplemental Congressional Appropriation for Hurricanes Helene and Milton and the Hawai'i wildfires. The funding is intended to help communities rebuild more resilient drinking water and wastewater systems after natural disasters.

Mulberry's wastewater treatment plant experienced flooding, power outages and increased flows during Hurricane Milton, disrupting operations and threatening wastewater service reliability. The funding will support construction of a flood barrier around the treatment plant, rehabilitation of the sewer collection system to reduce inflow and infiltration, upgrades to lift stations and installation of an emergency generator.

Florida received $1.7 billion through the supplemental congressional appropriation to fund eligible drinking water and wastewater resilience projects under the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund programs. The funding can be used for infrastructure improvements that increase resilience to future natural disasters in communities affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.