Comments Vary on Waukesha Water Application

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources received dozens of comments outlining questions or concerns about Waukesha’s application to divert Lake Michigan water out of the Great Lakes basin and to return the water to the Great Lakes.

Comments range from requesting denial and approval of the application, environmental and flooding concerns and asking for a review of the alternatives. The DNR has responded to the questions in its two-dozen page document attached to this article

While receiving more than 100 comments on the application, some of the comments were lumped together in the DNR's report.

The DNR is drafting the technical review and Environmental Impact Statement of allowing Waukesha to purchase Great Lakes water to remove radium from its water supply while addressing a declining water quality and quantity. The is ordered to reduce its radium levels by June 2018.

The DNR does not expect to have the technical review and EIS finished before December, according to its website. A second round of public comment on the application will occur after the documents are drafted.

The Waukesha Common Council agreed 1-1/2 years ago to apply for Great Lakes water. The application was delayed because of local politics and requests for clarification on the information by the DNR.

The city needs approvals first from the DNR and the Wisconsin governor. Then the application advances to all the Great Lakes states, who have to also approve the application.

In the meantime, Waukesha is beginning to negotiate with Oak Creek and Racine for a potential water supply and the Milwaukee Common Council has directed that the beginning research take place, which is a precursor to beginning negotiations.

 The construction costs for a pipeline to and from Milwaukee are estimated at $164 million, at $261 million for Oak Creek and $312 million for Racine. However, those figures are estimates, include a 25 percent contingency and are dependent on negotiations.