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A Commitment to Alaskans Urban Strategy 



ACTION STRATEGY: 



Promote a State/community partnership. 



It is essential that community participation in a project go beyond signing a grant offer or passing a resolution. 

 It is equally vital that the State's role transcends simply disbursing payments. Experience has shown that 

 communities who actively work with the State and participate in the solution to their sanitation problems are 

 more likely to adequately operate and maintain their facilities. 



Objective 1 Local commitment to participate in funding. 



Requiring a local funding commitment not only ensures that projects are a community 

 priority, it also increases community interest in operating and maintaining projects in which 

 they have made a financial investment Historically, the matching requirement of the 

 Municipal Grants program has been the catalyst for this commitment in urban communities. 

 Now, the Alaska Clean Water Fund loan programs are also available to assist all urban 

 communities participate in project costs. 



Objective 2 Cooperative planning. 



A successful project requires adequate and cooperative planning. Without planning, re- 

 sources may not be available to complete construction; a community may get a project which 

 is different from what they wanted; the facility constructed may not be feasible, practical, or 

 the most cost effective alternative available; and the cost of operating and maintaining the 

 system may be too expensive for the community. It is, therefore, vital that both local residents 

 and individuals with experience and expertise are part of the planning team. Project cost 

 estimates must be accurate or construction could be halted prior to completion. Public 

 hearings should be held frequently during planning to ensure the community gets what it wants 

 and has the information necessary to choose the most cost effective, feasible, and practical 

 project alternative. 



Cooperative Planning between communities and the Department is an integral part of 

 successful projects. It is a requirement of Municipal Grants, Federal Wastewater Loans, and 

 State Construction Loans. 



Objective 3 Operation and maintenance. 



In addition to a commitment to properly operate and maintain their facilities, funding for 

 sanitation projects should be conditioned upon a local commitment to (a) hire operators 

 certified at a level commensurate with the technical complexity of the facility, and (b) require 

 operator participation in refresher courses and skill advancement training. 



The Department will provide assistance for addressing these requirements by (a) ensuring 

 communities are aware of operation and maintenance costs associated with a project prior to 

 construction, (b) assisting communities to calculate user fees sufficient to finance operation 

 and maintenance costs, and (c) by offering training, technical assistance, and certification 

 programs for system operators. 



12. 



