They are planned so as to recover the cost of producing effluent to a quality level enabling unrestricted irrigation, or investment and maintenance related to the effluent pipe grid. To finance investments in wastewater treatment, municipalities receive grants and soft loans through various funds including the National Sewage Fund. It partly reflects the scarcity value of water resources, with a higher rate charged for the extraction of groundwater than for that of surface water (OECD, 2010a).