The City of Bemidji has received the state funding bonded for in the last legislative biennium for the water treatment plant.
DEED announced a number of grant awards made in the previous quarter that address cleaning up Minnesota’s waterways, particularly of PFAs, the forever chemicals detected in Bemidji’s public wells linked to the use of firefighting foam at the airport.
The first phase of the water treatment plant went online last year, with the second phase needing to be completed by June 2024.
The city was also awarded a $12.5 million settlement from the foam manufacturer, 3M.
The city will match the over $10 million from the state with $5.6 million for the predesign, design and construction of phase 2.
