BUCKFIELD – More than a mile of water line in Buckfield Village will be replaced under a project that has won funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The lines to be replaced, some as old as 1905, run under Route 117 about a half-mile on each side of the village, said Joan Pope, trustee of the Buckfield Water Co.

She said the water company was fortunate to win funding approval, as USDA Rural Development officials have said the money for such projects will not be available next year.

The money includes $425,000 in grants and $525,000 in loans to replace the water mains and hydrants in advance of a reconstruction of the highway planned by the state Department of Transportation.

“If we don’t do this, the state won’t fix the road,” which is considered one of the worst roads in the state, she said. “We don’t really have much choice.”

An informational meeting has been scheduled at 6 p.m. Aug. 26 in the Buckfield Town Office to go over project details. A corporation meeting will follow, at which users of the water company will vote on whether to accept the grant and borrow the funds from Rural Development at an interest rate of 4.5 percent.

The project will then be put out to bid, with work expected to begin this fall. On one end, the mains will be replaced to the headquarters of Oxford Networks. On the other, the mains will extend just shy of the Buckfield Mall.

As part of the road reconstruction work, it will be necessary to blast some ledge near two houses in the village, Pope said. “The pipes would never be able to take it,” she said. “We need to do our part before they do theirs.”

The water company serves about 185 customers, and pipes water from North Pond in Buckfield and Sumner. The grant award was based in part on an income survey, she said.