Lake Michigan Water in Wauconda?
The Village of Wauconda has assessed the sustainability of the local water supply to determine if it will continue to meet the needs of our community. Based on this assessment, five to seven more wells would need to be built in our community to meet future demand, costing between $6.5 to $8 million dollars.
The Village now has the opportunity to make Lake Michigan water its primary source of drinking water, benefiting the community by securing this vital resource for the long-term. READ MORE…
Learn more about the Village of Wauconda’s existing groundwater resources, demand, and future prognosis through this informative report developed by civil engineering firm Baxter & Woodman, Inc.
DOWNLOAD our most recent informational brochure.
View Lake County’s Informational Video!
Feasibility studies have shown the aquifers in this area have limited capacity and are susceptible to impurities and contaminants. Also, demand for water has resulted in over-pumping of several aquifers creating low water levels and poor water quality. Lake County, municipalities and other stakeholders are working to establish sustainable policies and practices in order to ensure there is available, clean, safe, and cost-effective drinking water in the future. View Informational Video.
Informational Q&As
Where does our water come from?
The Village gets its water from four shallow wells (wells less than 500 feet deep) and four deep wells (more than 1,000 feet deep) located throughout the Village.
Deep Wells: The raw water that comes from the deep wells contains a naturally occurring element called radium. Before the water enters the distribution system, the Village treats the drinking water to remove the radium. From this process, the radium that has been removed is discharged into the sanitary sewer system, which ultimately ends up at the Village’s wastewater treatment plant. EPA regulations are now being reviewed that may impose stricter treatment requirements for radium levels. Meeting these requirements would result in the Village incurring significantly higher costs that would severely impact operations and finances. Having a plan that reduces the reliance on deep wells will provide an alternative, should future radium regulations prohibit their continued use.
Shallow Wells: Current projections indicate that five to seven additional wells would need to be installed to meet future water supply needs. The concerns about drilling more shallow wells are:
- Reliability – Water from shallow wells, either within our Village, neighboring communities, or on private property, is all drawn from the same supply site/aquifer. If more water is drawn out than can be naturally replaced, either by overpopulation or by drought conditions, the aquifer and all the wells that use that supply can go dry. Once an aquifer goes dry, new wells would have to be drilled to provide our community with drinking water.
- Avoiding possible contamination – While there has been no indication of risk of contamination from the Superfund site (former garbage dump) of the Village’s wells, a sole supply of Lake Michigan water would completely eliminate any risk of such contamination in the future. Eliminating this risk maintains a healthful supply of drinking water and preserves the property values in the area.
- Cost – Bringing five to seven new wells and their required treatment plants online in order to meet increased demand would cost between $6.5 – $8 million dollars.
Is something wrong with the existing groundwater supply?
No, nothing is wrong with the drinking water that the Village currently provides. The concerns are for the future water supplies for our community.
What are the alternatives if the groundwater supply dries up?
The Village would need to find another supply for drinking water if the aquifers run dry. Lake Michigan water is the only cost effective adequate source currently available that is not dependent on ground water.
Why would Lake Michigan water be a good choice for Village residents?
Village officials have been concerned about the diminishing water supply in local aquifers for a number of years. Work began in 2007 to investigate alternatives for the Village and then to request an allocation of Lake Michigan water from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). In 2010, the Village received the requested allocation, and will be allowed to receive water from the lake. Lake Michigan water is less susceptible to both over-mining and contamination. Lake water is also naturally softer than groundwater, so use of in-home water softeners would likely be unnecessary.
What would happen if something pollutes the water in Lake Michigan or if there is a problem with the pipeline from the lake?
Groundwater wells would still be maintained to act as an emergency supply should an interruption to the Lake Michigan water supply occur. This redundancy in the water supply system is one of the greatest benefits of the proposed project. Having two completely different sources of water, one of our most vital resource, provides the safest, most reliable system.
If water supply problems will not be felt for years, why worry about the problem now?
Even if the Village stops growth within its borders, it will still be significantly impacted because the aquifers that we currently use feed the water needs for all of Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin. The Village has a defined window of opportunity to decide about the future of Lake Michigan water. If the Village does not take significant steps to use the water allocation by 2015, we will lose it. We will be required to turn the allocation back into the IDNR and to re-apply to be considered for another allocation. The opportunity to obtain a new Lake Michigan Water allocation again in the future is not likely. A 2009 report by the IDNR showed that approximately 95% of the Lake Michigan water available for residents of Illinois had already been taken. Communities in McHenry County and other collar counties have already made plans to request the remaining allocations.
Are there other alternatives to consider?
At the moment there are no other adequate supplies to replace ground water that would be cost effective.
How does this affect Wauconda residents?
If the Village transitions to Lake Michigan water, new infrastructure such as piping, treatment facilities and pumps would need to be built. Several options to obtain the water are being considered, so exact figures are not available for construction, but residents would see an increase in their water and sewer rates if Lake Michigan water is brought to the Village. It is not known exactly what the dollar amount would be for the project, but it is estimated that this increase would run approximately $40 per home per month. What is known now is that the idea of water as a ‘free’ and ‘unlimited’ resource is quickly coming to an end.
