Joliet Environmental Commission Votes On Joliet’s New Water Source

The Environmental Commission voted on Joliet’s new water source on Tuesday night. Commissioner John Hertko says last night’s decision was 4 decades in the making.

Hertko says Joliet’s water source decision has been kicked down the road for the last 40 years. The commission was unanimous in voting for Lake Michigan to be Joliet’s source of water and voted 6-2 for the most expensive pipeline, to Indiana.

It would cost 1-billion dollars to build a pipeline to Indiana. That could raise water bills from 31-dollars a month to 98-dollars a month by 2030. The second option is to get Lake Michigan water from Chicago a slightly less expensive option. Illinois River and Kankakee Rivers were not even considered as water sources due to water quality and longevity. A third option would be to join a consortium that would include multiple cities and entities to provide water to multiple locations.

The Joliet City Council will vote on Joliet’s new source on January 7th, 2020.