The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a $610 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan to the Grand Prairie Water Commission, which serves six communities in northeastern Illinois. The funding will help transition nearly 300,000 residents from a declining groundwater aquifer to Lake Michigan as a more reliable source of drinking water.
“No American should worry about the reliability of their drinking water. We are pleased that Grand Prairie Water Commission will use this investment to ensure its water customers have a stable and reliable source of drinking water for current and future generations,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Jess Kramer.
The Grand Prairie Water Commission is comprised of six member communities: the Cities of Crest Hill and Joliet, and the Villages of Channahon, Minooka, Shorewood, and Romeoville. These communities currently rely on a declining groundwater aquifer as their primary source of drinking water. With support from EPA’s WIFIA financing, the commission plans to construct a 62-mile regional water transmission network and upgrade other infrastructure systems as part of its Alternative Water Source Program…