VIDALIA, La. — Eddie Turner has had to replace his septic tanks three times because they have deteriorated due to soil conditions, and he has seen sewage collect often in nearby ditches and yards. So Turner, chairman of the board of Concordia Parish Sewage District No. 1, could hardly contain his excitement when, on Wednesday, the parish received $5.182 million in state and federal funds to improve a sewage treatment facility at Ridgecrest and build new sewer lines and lift stations in that area.

&uot;I&160;know a lot of people who have gone to the doctor for sicknesses that, for all I know, could be the result of that sewage,&uot; Turner said.

The money included $3.115 million in grants and $1.139 million in loans from the U.S. Rural Utilities Service and a $928,000 Community Development Block Grant from the Louisiana Office of Community Development.

&uot;This can mean nothing but help to our area,&uot;&160;Turner said of the project, which will affect an estimated 1,029 households. &uot;There’s no way to tell you how much this means.&uot;

Local officials have been working — &uot;applying, reapplying, begging, pleading&uot; — for eight years to get funds for the project, said engineer Bryant Hammett.

Because permits must be obtained and designing and planning must still be done, it will be 15 to 20 months before construction can begin. But once construction starts, the project should take only one year to complete, Hammett said.

An application has already been submitted for an additional $3.5 million to make sewer improvements in the Concordia Park and Airport Road areas. Hammett said he hopes Concordia Parish will receive those funds this time next year.

Three smaller sewer projects have been done in that area over the past 10 years, &uot;but this will be a more holistic approach,&uot;&160;Hammett said.

Michael Taylor, Louisiana’s rural development coordinator, called the condition of sewage facilities in the Ridgecrest area &uot;an environmental and health hazard&uot; and said improvements should bring not only better living conditions, but economic development as well.

&uot;One of the first questions industries ask when they’re coming into an area is ‘what kind of water and sewer service will I&160;have?’&uot; Taylor said.

&uot;We always hear about the bad things we’re number one in in our area,&uot;&160;Turner said. &uot;In a few years, we’ll be able to point with pride at what’s going in economic development in this area.&uot;