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Organized by the
Illinois State Water Survey
and the
Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, the event will
feature more than 20 invited talks, including a keynote address by
Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn.
Groundwater exists beneath the earth's surface, often between
saturated soil and rock. Surface water is above ground in streams,
rivers or lakes. Because depletion of groundwater could affect Lake
Michigan itself, even communities with access to the lake have a
vested interest in careful planning of how groundwater is used.
"Population around Lake Michigan is
expected to grow 20 percent by the year 2030, increasing pressure on
finite water supplies," said Judy Beck, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency manager for Lake Michigan. "The lake itself relies
on groundwater for 79 percent of its volume, which is the highest
rate among the Great Lakes.
"The EPA's 2004 management plan for
Lake Michigan was a significant milestone, representing agreement on
the issue's importance by four states, 10 Indian tribes and six
federal agencies. ‘Straddling the Divide' will address a critical
need by convening stakeholders from all around the Lake Michigan
basin to discuss the sustainable use of this globally significant
resource."
Census-based forecasts project that
future growth in Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana along Lake Michigan
will follow patterns that present distinct challenges for planners
in the three-state region. In southeastern Wisconsin, the trend is
growth to the west of the built-up land ringing the lake. In
northeastern Illinois, population is increasing most rapidly in the
farthest suburbs of Chicago. And in northwestern Indiana, most
growth is happening far south of the industrialized strip along the
lake. Population and land development are increasing where Lake
Michigan water is not available, which heightens the need for
careful planning to sustain groundwater and meet future demand.
Sam Santell, director of planning
for the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, will describe
these trends, contrasting growth patterns with the availability of
known water supplies. "While our region faces urgent water supply
issues, we have an opportunity to address them now rather than wait
for a bigger crisis," he said. "This will require cooperation at the
municipal, county, regional and interstate levels."
Because the volume of water that the
state of Illinois can divert from Lake Michigan is limited by a
Supreme Court decree, that amount will remain fixed even as the
demand for water increases. Communities that expand without Lake
Michigan water allocations will put increasing pressure on other
sources of water. On a regional basis, inland surface waters such as
the Fox River are relatively meager sources of water, leaving
groundwater as the most likely supply source for large parts of the
region.
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"The Illinois State Water Planning
Task Force has placed northeastern Illinois at the top of the
state's priority water quantity planning," said Derek Winstanley,
chief of the Illinois State Water Survey. "Significant work is
needed to better understand the groundwater resources that will have
to be tapped to supply drinking water to much of the region."
The
Southern Lake Michigan Regional Water Supply Consortium
addresses these issues collaboratively across southeastern Wisconsin
and northwestern Indiana. The consortium, led by the Northeastern
Illinois Planning Commission, includes agencies, communities and
interested parties that collaborate to identify the needs for
regional water supply planning. In addition to maintaining a Web
clearinghouse of information on Lake Michigan and water supply
sources, the consortium facilitates regional water supply planning
by providing a forum for planners, scientists and water supply
providers to exchange ideas and stay up to date on the latest news.
The Illinois State Water Survey, a
division of the Office of Scientific Research and Analysis of the
Illinois Department of Natural
Resources, is affiliated with the
University of Illinois
and is the primary agency in Illinois concerned with water and
atmospheric resources. The Illinois State Water Survey was founded
in 1895 as a unit of the University of Illinois Department of
Chemistry.
The General Assembly created the
Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission in 1957 as the region's
comprehensive land-use planning agency. That legislation authorizes
the commission to conduct research for planning, including official
forecasts of population, employment and other socioeconomic
indicators; to advise units of local government on their plans and
policies; and to provide general comprehensive plans and policies
for use by local governments. That role was reaffirmed in 2000 by an
interagency agreement with the Chicago Area Transportation Study,
the Regional Transit Authority and the Illinois Department of
Transportation. The agreement stipulates that the commission's plans
and data are the basis for the regional transportation plan that
guides critical decisions and investments of federal transportation
funding.
[Provided by
Eva Kingston, senior editor,
Illinois State Water Survey]
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