Smithfield — Improvements topping $142 million are needed to keep Johnston County’s public utilities running smoothly in the years to come.

Last week, County Commissioners approved a 10-year capital-improvement plan that calls for $91 million for water needs, $20 million for sewage collection and treatment, $8 million for water reclamation and $23 million for solid waste and recycling.

The spending would take place over the next 10 years, according to a report prepared for commissioners. “Although the total amount of proposed expenditures may appear daunting, they reflect the true scope of utility and solid waste provided by the county,” the report stated.

State and federal loans are usually available for water and sewer projects. “Unfortunately, for solid waste, little if any loan and grant funding assistance is available,” the report stated.

While County Commissioners approved the plan, they did not set aside any money. How much of the work gets done will likely depend on the grants and loans available. It’s unlikely commissioners would raise water, sewer and landfill rates enough to cover all of the planned spending.

Of the $91 million in water-supply needs, much of the money would go to help the county’s treatment plant meet new state standards for water quality. Other dollars would pay for transmission lines, pump stations and an elevated storage tank.

The sewer dollars would pay for interceptors, force mains and additional treatment capacity.

The water-reclamation dollars would pay for distribution lines to McGee’s Crossroads, Johnston Community College, lumber companies and farms.

The landfill, meanwhile, is likely to reach its capacity this year, but another “cell” will be opened to provide relief until 2014. Also, the plan calls for a methane-gas collection system and a gas-to-electricity energy system.

Finally, the plan calls for $950,000 for buildings needed to support public utilities. The sewage-treatment plant, for example, would get storage space for bulk materials, and the county would build space to store heavy equipment.