Last week, Gov. Josh Stein and North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Reid Wilson stopped by Canton to talk to media, local leaders and State Reps. Lindsay Prather and Eric Ager about the town’s construction of a new wastewater treatment plant. He also highlighted the role the state played in bringing the project to fruition while calling on federal legislators to provide more funding to ensure more towns can complete similar crucial infrastructure improvements.
Canton’s wastewater treatment plant has been a frequent subject of headlines since the town’s papermill shut down in 2023. The mill had its own industrial-scale treatment plant that had served the town free of charge for over a half-century. Last year, Canton announced that it would purchase land near the site of the existing treatment plant for about $14 million using finds appropriated from a state Hurricane Helene relief bill. That money came in addition to $38 million the General Assembly had previously allocated for construction of a new treatment plant. In March of this year, the town executed the deal, ultimately purchasing two parcels totaling 52.1 acres.
At last week’s press conference, held at the former site of the paper mill’s chip yard — the site that will eventually house the treatment plant — Mayor Zeb Smathers spoke ahead of the governor and secretary. Smathers thanked the state, along with local and federal governments, for their help attention through the myriad catastrophes to hit the town, including the pandemic, Tropical Storm Fred, the mill closure and Hurricane Helene. He said that the vision of town officials has enabled leaders to take advantage of opportunities as they’re presented. Smathers noted that the town being able to treat its own wastewater isn’t just about utility; it’s about Canton controlling its own destiny.
“This is not for us the ‘mill town miracle,’ it’s the ‘mill town moonshot,’” he said.
In his remarks, Stein marveled over Canton’s resilience.
“I’ve had the pleasure of visiting Canton a number of times in recent years, and after every visit, I leave more inspired than I was before I came, and I am certain that is going to be the case today,” he said.
Stein discussed the $3.5 million allocated to the town last month to aid not only the wastewater treatment plant construction but also a project to connect the water systems of Canton, Clyde and Waynesville to improve overall reliability. He noted that the $25 million total provided to the town to bolster water and sewer infrastructure is part of the $861 million that has gone toward similar projects across the greater Helene-impacted region. He added that in each project, improving flood-resilience is a must. The new wastewater treatment plant, for example, will be built on higher ground, making it less susceptible to inundation when the next big flood hits.
Stein was also quick to point out that there is more work to be done, and he called for more money to help meet that need. The amount spent to date has exhausted the fund established to get water and sewer infrastructure projects off the ground and across the finish line. However, Stein said that the still-unmet need, based on applications for funding received, stands at about $650 million. As he has in the past, Stein called on Congress to appropriate more federal dollars for Helene recovery, which his office said would include $540 million for the Environmental Protection Agency to improve water quality and infrastructure, carry out brownfield assessments, restore damaged rivers and support effective hazardous waste management. Congress has not appropriated new funding toward Hurricane Helene recovery in nearly 18 months.
“The federal government has not appropriated any relief dollars for Western North Carolina since the Biden administration and the last Congress,” he said. “It is time for this administration and this Congress to step up for Western North Carolina. It’s simple; when families turn on their tap at home, they have to know that that water is safe and clean.”
From left, Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers (from left), Gov. Josh Stein and DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson look over the former paper mill property. Kyle Perrotti photo
In his comments, DEQ Secretary Wilson said that Helene recovery has been a top priority for his department. He wants the region to build back better and stronger so that it can withstand the next Helene-level event, he said. Piggy-backing on Stein’s comments, Wilson highlighted the unmet needs for further infrastructure improvements. While he did call on Congress to approve the request for $13.5 billion, he added that this is also about more than just “numbers and dollars.”
“It’s about ensuring that everyone out here has safe and healthy drinking water, and that, as the governor said, everyone expects and deserves that, and that’s what these dollars will go to help fund,” he said. “It’s also about making sure that the wonderful Pigeon River runs clean for us to enjoy terms of recreation, but also wildlife and water quality.”
The last speaker was Haywood Waterways Association Executive Director Preston Jacobsen. During his remarks, Wilson noted that DEQ provided a $2 million grant to Haywood Waterways. A large portion of that grant went toward debris removal.
Jacobsen noted a fact oft-repeated by folks concerned with Haywood’s watersheds — it’s a headwaters county, meaning no water flows in.
“We are the highest source of water in the Eastern U.S. It doesn’t get any higher than us here. There is no surface water that flows into Haywood County,” he said. “While this is a point that I’m bragging about, it is a huge responsibility, and one that we do not take lightly.”
Jacobsen considers that the nonprofit isn’t just managing a river; it’s managing an important resource for local communities, as well as the hundreds of communities downstream. He thanked Wilson and other partners for their support of Haywood Waterways over its 30 years. He noted that the money from the grant used for debris removal has yielded substantial results to the tune of 245,000 pounds removed.
“We feel that we are on track to hopefully remove 400,000 pounds by the end of this year … We are extremely thankful to bring those dollars to the local level and get the job done right away, because the investments made right here in Canton will physically shape our future and our landscape for now, but also for the generations to come,” he said.
During Smathers’ remarks, he also called attention to warehouses previously used by the mill that were purchased by the town. Canton bought those warehouses, which total 153,000 square-feet, with the hope that they will bring in manufacturing or tech companies that will create jobs and broaden the tax base.
“We know we can go to our community college and our public schools and our university system to take care of workforce, but we are very passionate that the next future, the next chapter of kids’ future, start with the last one ended, and that is with manufacturing,” Smathers said.