(October 29, 2020) – On October 19, Central Arkansas Water (CAW) posted a $30.6 million green bond certified under the Climate Bonds Water Infrastructure Criteria. The new bond is the first of its kind to acquire and protect forests specifically to secure clean drinking water. 

NACWA collaborated with the World Resources Institute – which partnered with CAW to prepare issuance of the bond – on a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) back in 2015 to explore the possibility of exactly this type of innovative financing for natural infrastructure.

The bond will finance a combination of green and gray infrastructure projects to protect clean drinking water for the almost 500,000 residents of the greater Little Rock, Arkansas area. The bond will formally close in late November.

Members with questions can contact Chris Hornback, NACWA’s Deputy CEO.