JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) was awarded $2 million by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

According to Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the federal grant money will be used to fund a comprehensive plan and design study of the J.H. Fewell Water Treatment Plant and the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant in Jackson.

Thompson said the planning and design study will help the city to determine the best mitigation action which may include: consolidation of the plants, upgrading the plants, and/or replacement of the plants, to effectively mitigate the vulnerability of its water distribution system and reliable drinking water to service its current population.