COOPERSVILLE, Mich. (WOOD) — Gov. Rick Snyder was in Coopersville Monday to sign an executive order for a new pilot program aimed at rebuilding and streamlining the state’s infrastructure.

The governor spent the morning at Fairlife and Continental Dairy, which has been growing quickly. Snyder said that as that happened, Continental started running out of options for wastewater treatment. He said the recently created 21st Century Infrastructure Commission helped find a solution, aiding in plans for Continental to hook into Muskegon’s water utilities, which the governor said is a win for both sides.

He hopes the program will work well enough that similar projects can be rolled out across the state.

“We picked two pilot regions to say, ‘Let’s get people that want to work together.’ They actually volunteered to do this effort, to partner with the state on being leaders on this topic,” Snyder said. “By doing real projects, we’ll get learning and experience. I’ll ask them to report back within a year on what they’ve learned and how we can make things ever better and take it across all of Michigan.”

The governor also spoke about federal funding for Michigan infrastructure. He discussed the need for a new, 1,000-foot lock at the Soo Locks. Snyder even called it a matter of national security, saying a failure of the current big lock, named the Poe Lock, could mean a catastrophic loss of jobs and deliver a huge blow to the economy.