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Water Supplies May Not Be Enough for Growing Chicago

Posted by: Nate Berg

17 July 2008 - 8:00am

More than 2 million people are expected to be added to the metropolitan Chicago region by 2030, and water supplies may not be able to keep up. Officials are trying to find a solution.

"Perched on the edge of one of the world's great fresh water sources, the Chicago metro area, ironically, is reaching the upper limit of the water it can take from the lake by court order while at the same time discovering the deep water aquifers supplying outer suburbs are not replenishing as before."

"This one-two punch has galvanized state and local officials into trying to figure out ways to sustain the current fresh water supply and using the available supply more efficiently in the future."

"'People may think as long as water is running out of the tap there is plenty. But we have been mining water and we need to [plan] now rather than address this on a crisis basis,' insists Paul Schuch, director of Water Resources for fast-growing Kane County."

Full Story: Chicago area reaching limit on fresh water supply
Source: The Chicago Tribune, July 16, 2008
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The increased attention to matters of urban design has forced the field to become alert to more aspects of the social and natural sciences, to transportation and civil engineering, water and waste management, zoning and public policy, and other areas earlier considered largely the responsibility of others.
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