Below find a letter to the trustees of the Urbana Champaign Sanitary District outlining our position on water sales by the district. This letter was precipitated by UCSD’s consideration of water sales to two different proposed facilities – the Cronus fertilizer plant near Tuscola, IL and Sunrise Coal’s “Bulldog” coal mine in Vermilion County, IL. PRN believes that it is necessary for UCSD to adopt a formal policy to help guide considerations of water sales.

For background information on the water sales currently being considered, go here. The UCSD draft policy statement, to which this letter is a response, can be found here.

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Dear Trustees Lenik, Lyke and Putman:

Thank you for presenting the District’s draft policy on effluent sales for public review and comment.  The sale of effluent by the District is a new and serious consideration with long term implications for the Champaign Urbana community. As I stated at the public meeting on May 8th, it appears that the contemplated sale to Cronus is being made without due consideration of the potential ramifications and long term consequences. Likewise, the policy reads as if it has been hastily drafted to facilitate the sale. We hope you will use the invitation from Cronus as an opportunity to develop a policy for the future, rather than feel compelled to act quickly, according to a timeline set by Cronus. We need a policy that helps protect our water supply and promotes the health of local, cherished streams. The comments we heard on May 8 demonstrated overwhelming interest in protecting these streams and in planning for the future.

To that end, we offer the following comments on the draft policy. The numbered paragraphs correspond to those in the draft.

Paragraph 1.     The meaning of “financially beneficial” is unknown, as is the meaning of “influences.” Although policy statements tend to be more general in nature, if the document is too vague or overbroad how is the public, or the board for that matter, to determine whether a contemplated sale is consistent with the policy?  Please provide some clarification as to the meaning of these terms. The policy should require the sale price to be commensurate with market value in a comparable market, and reflect the opportunity cost of foreclosing the option to meet unforeseen local needs.

Paragraph 2.     Likewise, there is no indication what a “substantial contract” is. Is the potential Cronus contract substantial? What about the Bulldog Mine proposal?  We suggest that the policy clarify which proposals will be subject to public input and that the policy require the Board to seek public input and to strongly encourage and facilitate such input.  A public meeting and public comment period should be required elements of sale proposal considerations. Moreover, public comments should be sought after the public has been provided with a credible analysis of the impacts of the choices to be presented to the board for decision. {Continue Reading »}

UCSD considering water sale to fertilizer plant & coal mine

The Urbana Champaign Sanitary District (UCSD) is considering selling large amounts of water from its Urbana and Champaign sewage treatment plants to Cronus Chemical, a company proposing a fertilizer plant near Tuscola in Douglas County, IL. UCSD has also received a request to sell water to Hallador Energy’s Sunrise Coal, the company that is trying to develop the “Bulldog” coal mine southeast of Homer in Vermilion County, IL.

UCSD’s water discharges, commonly referred to as “effluent,” now flow from the Urbana sewage treatment plant to the Saline Branch and then the Salt Fork of the Vermilion River, and from the Champaign plant to Copper Slough and eventually, to the Kaskaskia River. The water sales could significantly change the flows in these streams and may commit the District to selling water that would one day be needed in Champaign County.

Please join us at the UCSD public meeting on May 8^th @ 6:30 pm at the Urbana sewage treatment plant, 1100 East University Avenue, Urbana.  {Continue Reading »}

Please join us at the public meeting on May 8^th at 6:30 pm at the UCSD Urbana plant, 1100 E. University Ave.

The Urbana Champaign Sanitary District (UCSD) is considering selling large amounts of water from its Urbana and Savoy sewage treatment plants to Cronus Chemical, a company proposing a $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Tuscola, IL. UCSD is also exploring a water sale to Hallador Energy’s Sunrise Coal, the company that is trying to develop a new coal mine near Homer, IL.

UCSD’s water discharges, commonly referred to as “effluent,” now flow from the Urbana sewage treatment plant to the Salt Fork of the Vermilion River, and from the Savoy plant to Copper Slough and eventually, the Kaskaskia River.  The water sales would change the flows in these streams significantly.

Much is at stake in this contemplated water sale including the health of our streams, the sustainability of our community water supply, and the health of our local economies.  We do not believe the UCSD Board has considered the full ramifications of these sales. The District should not be rushing into contracts that promise our water to outside, water-intensive industries.  The District is holding a public meeting on May 8th at the Urbana treatment plant. Please join us for a full, open and informed discussion.

Please spread the word to your friends and colleagues.

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Since 1989, City Water, Light, and Power (CWLP) has been trying to get the OK to build a dam in Springfield to create a second large reservoir for the city. Prairie Rivers Network and others have opposed the 7,000-acre dam project because it is not needed. We have testified that the City’s existing lake, supplemented by water from nearby well fields and gravel mining pits could supply the City with the water it needs.

The dam would permanently flood two beautiful creek valleys with their steep ravines, ancient oaks, and diverse wildflowers and wetlands. The old Pensacola Tavern, a 180-year-old brick building and stagecoach stop where Stephen Douglas gave a presidential campaign speech in 1860, still stands amidst the ancient oaks.   For more information, see our previous post.

Anti-Hunter Dam Brochure by CSWU, a Springfield-based citizen's group

It appears the Army Corps of Engineers may agree with us. The Corps has found  CWLP’s analysis of the environmental impacts of the dam unacceptable  and will require CWLP,  if it still wants a permit, to reexamine the feasibility of using the gravel pits as a water supply.

Here is a link to a project factsheet by the US Army Corps of Engineers: http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/Projects/dsp_factsheet.cfm?ProjID=F5A05759-FBBA-DA94-102FB1854749E477

Prairie Rivers Network applauds the Army Corps of Engineers for standing firm and requiring adequate study and consideration of alternatives to this harmful and unnecessary project.

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Formed in 2006, The East Central Illinois Regional Water Supply Planning Committee (RWSPC) released its final report in June, 2009, containing recommendations for future regional water supply planners. The group will discuss its report, “A Plan to Improve the Planning and Management of Water Supplies in East-Central Illinois” Wednesday, September 30, from 7-9 pm at Parkland College’s Tony Noel Center.

This report is not the end, but the beginning, of water supply planning efforts in East Central Illinois. The next steps will involve choosing specific measures, such as conservation practices, that will reduce water use. Public participation and oversight during the subsequent water supply planning process is critical. Future choices regarding water conservation must include protecting the functions and benefits of regional rivers and streams, as well as the the Mahomet Aquifer.

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If you haven’t yet read the New York Times article entitled “Toxic Waters: Clean Water Laws Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering“ that appeared Sunday, September 13, I encourage you to do so now.

The article paints a stark picture of health threats posed by pollution in our nation’s waters. Pollution found in our drinking water is making people sick and has been linked to cancer and damage to the kidneys and nervous system. The Environmental Protection Agency and state regulatory agencies are charged with carrying out the Clean Water Act and the Safe Water Drinking Act in order to ensure clean, safe drinking water. However, between a “culture of transgression and apathy” and a doubling in the number of regulated facilities in the last ten years, the agencies responsible for making sure the laws are enforced are not getting the job done. {Continue Reading »}