State and Regional Water Supply Planning in Illinois

Transcription

1 State and Regional Water Supply Planning in Illinois Walt Kelly Illinois State Water Survey Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

2 Governor s Executive Order (re-)established water supply planning in Illinois

3 What is Regional Water Supply Planning? Ensuring there are adequate and reliable supplies of clean water for all users at reasonable cost How much water we will need? How much water will be available? What are options for providing additional supplies, reducing demand, and what are the impacts and costs? Two foundations required Knowledge of available water supply Forecasts or scenarios of future water demand Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) provides oversight and funding

4 10 Water Supply Planning Regions Northeastern Illinois and East- Central received top priorities Kaskaskia River Basin next After one year of funding, state funds dried up Surveys continued scientific work using GRF resources First 3 regions completed In 2014, IDNR re-started the regional planning process

5 Regional Water Supply Planning Groups (RWSPGs) The regional water supply planning groups are assigned responsibility for the development of water demand scenarios to 2050 The RWSPG members have the best information regarding economic plans, future development, and ideas about growth for their region in the future. Because all water resources available for development have a finite capacity for supply, it is being left to the planning regions to recommend how best to accommodate the future water supply demands from a regional point of view

6 RWSPG Members Agriculture Environment Counties Electric Utilities Industry Municipalities Navigation Recreation Rural Water Districts Small Business Soil & Water Conservation Districts Water Authorities Water Utilities Mining General Public

7 RWSPG organizing groups Northeastern Illinois: Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) East-Central Illinois: Mahomet Aquifer Consortium (MAC) Kaskaskia: Kaskaskia Watershed Association Middle Illinois: Tri-County Regional Planning Commission (based in Peoria) Northwestern Illinois: Blackhawk Hills Regional Council? Funding for RWSPGs is currently in limbo

8 Final Product: Regional Water Supply Plan Regional plans should contain: Currently available and possible future water supply Water-demand scenarios Water supply deficits or conflicts Possible options for water supply/demand management to meet future water needs It is anticipated that additional planning and water quantity studies will occur in intervals of not more than every 10 years. Ultimate goal: an integrated mosaic of regional water supply plans, appropriate for each region, that will guide planners and water supply entities in taking appropriate courses of action to provide and assure adequate supply of clean water at reasonable cost for all of Illinois citizens.

9

10 Role of State Scientific Surveys Update and expand water resource information in each Planning Area to provide the regional planning group with information on the available water supply Develop a website to make available all relevant data and information Determine current water withdrawals and uses and evaluate impacts of drought, climate change, and other risks and uncertainties on the water resources Attend meetings of the RWSPGs, provide technical and scientific support, and engage in education and outreach on water supply planning Compare future water demand scenarios to the available water supply scenarios to produce information on water supply conflicts Address water quality issues relevant to water supply planning

11 Sources of Water in Illinois Lake Michigan Rivers (Illinois, Fox, Kankakee, etc.) Reservoirs Federal: Shelbyville, Carlyle, Rend State: Springfield, Decatur, Bloomington, etc. Groundwater Bedrock Sand & Gravel (unconsolidated)

12 Source of Municipal Water used by Communities in NE Illinois (2014)

13 Lake Michigan Almost all of Lake Michigan water used in Illinois is transferred to the Illinois River watershed 1967 Supreme Court Decree (amended in 1980) limits Illinois' diversion from Lake Michigan to 3,200 cfs based on a 40 year running average The Illinois Lake Michigan Water Allocation Program was developed to manage Illinois' diversion; managed by IDNR Office of Water Resources

14 Lake Michigan Distribution Network (2012)

15 Lake Michigan Diversion

16 Lake Michigan Domestic Use

17 Surface Water Sources

18 Aquifers in Illinois Deep Bedrock Shallow Bedrock Sand & Gravel (Quaternary)

19 Aquifers of Northern Illinois

20 Water Use in Illinois: Illinois Water Inventory Program (IWIP) Total Public Water Supply Withdrawals by County and Township (2011)

21 Water Use in Illinois: Power Generation Use (2011)

22 Water Demand Projections New Regions: Projections going out to 2060

23

24 East-Central Illinois Evergreen Lake Lake Bloomington Lake Vermilion Lake Decatur Lake Springfield

25 Geological Characterization Quaternary deposits Bedrock surface

26 Develop Groundwater Flow Model

27 Water Withdrawal within the Mahomet Aquifer System

28 Mahomet Aquifer: Potential Impacts of New High Capacity Wellfields

29 Resiliency to Drought: Lake Decatur

30 Historical Droughts: Lake Decatur

31 Water Availability: Fox River

32 Water Supply Planning: Current Work at the State Water and Geological Surveys Modernization of IWIP Synoptic measurement of groundwater levels in sandstone aquifers Expand groundwater level monitoring network Combine regional groundwater models into statewide model Modernize surface water accounting model (ILSAM) Begin scientific work in new regions Middle Illinois River Kankakee (sub-region) Northwestern Illinois Update work in previously studied regions

33 Water Demand from Cambrian-Ordovician Sandstone Aquifers 300 Total Illinois Northeastern Illinois WSPR 250 Northwestern Illinois WSPR Middle Illinois WSPR Spoon and LaMoine WSPR 200 Mgd

34 Groundwater Withdrawals from Cambrian- Ordovician Sandstone Aquifers (2012)

35 Middle Illinois River Region Evaluate public water systems at Pontiac and Streator Hydrologic and hydraulic analysis of lock and dam operations at Marseilles and Dresden Island Sampling bedrock wells (focus on St. Peter Sandstone)

36 Develop State-wide Groundwater Flow Model

37 Synoptic Measurement of Cambrian- Ordovician Sandstone Wells Measure non-pumping water levels over a short period of time (fall 2014) 675 wells measured in Illinois and Wisconsin Largest study since 1980

38 Potentiometric Surface of Cambrian- Ordovician Sandstone Aquifers (2014)

39 Hydrographs of bedrock wells in NE Illinois

40 Effects of Aquifer Desaturation 1) Small-capacity wells penetrating the upper portion of the sandstone may go dry. 2) The well will likely produce less water and additional wells may need to be constructed to meet demand. 3) Desaturated sandstone will be exposed to oxygen, which alters the water chemistry, with potentially negative effects. 4) If heads decrease enough, the entire aquifer can become completely desaturated and unusable.

41 Risk of desaturation of the St. Peter Sandstone projected for 2050 under various scenarios

42 Remaining Regions to be Studied (prioritized) Big Muddy River American Bottoms Aquifer System Lower Illinois River Wabash and Ohio River Tributaries Spoon and LaMoine Rivers