North Carolina Department of Public Safety has been awarded a $5.4 million grant from FEMA to protect the City of Hickory’s Northeast Wastewater Treatment facility from future disasters.

The FY 2020 grant is funded through a new mitigation program, Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC), to help local communities, states, tribes, and territories as they undertake hazard mitigation projects, reducing the risks they face from disasters and natural hazards.

“This project will increase the resilience of the community and help protect the residents of Hickory and Catawba County. We are excited to see it awarded,” said North Carolina Emergency Management Director Will Ray. “Floodwaters have risen increasingly higher near this facility over the past several years, and this mitigation work will better protect the plant during future flood events.”

A protective berm around the Northeast Wastewater Treatment Facility influent pump station will be elevated, and. stream and bank stabilization will be improved along 2,000 feet of Falling Creek.

The total project cost is $7,186,898. FEMA will pay 75 percent of the eligible project cost with a federal share of $5,407,285. The remaining 25 percent, or $1,779,613, will be matched by the City of Hickory.

“With the frequency, intensity and cost of weather events FEMA wants to help protect communities before disaster strikes. Mitigation funding for projects like this will protect the health and safety of residents when there is a flood,” said FEMA Region 4 Administrator Gracia Szczech.

The BRIC funding helps meet the increased demand for hazard mitigation across the nation and will enhance FEMA’s work to reach historically underserved communities. To learn more about the BRIC grant program, visit www.fema.gov/bric or NC DPS: Non-Disaster Grants.