The U.S. Department of the Interior announced this week Western cities vulnerable to drought will receive $1 billion over the next five years through funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law in November 2021.

The funding was earmarked by Congress for water projects and will provide $550 million for water reclamation and reuse projects and $250 million for water desalination projects over the course of the next five years. Funding will be available for up to 25 percent of the cost of planning, design and construction of projects, while desalination projects are eligible for no more than $30 million each.