Announced at the Water Pro Conference in Fort Worth, Texas, the United States Department of Agriculture is going to invest $392 million in order to improve water infrastructure for communities with 10,000 or fewer residents.

With the aptly named "Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant" program, money is going towards funding 120 projects that aim to improve aspects of drinking water, stormwater management and wastewater disposal.

One of the terrific parts of this information is that small, rural communities and water districts can actually apply online to receive funding to "maintain, modernize or build water and wastewater systems." This in turn creates local jobs in those areas for construction professionals, designers and contractors.

Three concrete examples of how the money will be dispersed were given on WaterWorld.com, the first being that the city of Stuttgart, Ark., will receive a $1 million loan to replace its failing water system which would bolster access to clean drinking water for locals. According to the last census, the city has a population of 9,326 residents.

The second example provided regarding the dispersal of funding was that The city of Swartz Creek, Mich., will get a $2.9 million loan and a $2.3 million grant in order to make improvements to its water system. This project includes reconstruction of four miles of waterlines, hydrants and valves and is estimated to serve 2,098 residents and 216 businesses.

In Oral, S.D., the Fall River Water Users District will be receiving a $506,000 loan and a $401,000 grant to dig a new well that will be located west of Fairburn.

For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.