HR0116LRB099 07297 GRL 27404 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The Mahomet Aquifer system is an underground layer
3of water-bearing sand and gravel that fills a wide bedrock
4valley in all or parts of 14 east-central Illinois counties;
5the aquifer system is the source of approximately 53 million
6gallons of water every year for 120 public water systems and
7thousands of rural wells that serve about 500,000 people; and
 
8    WHEREAS, More than half of the population in east-central
9Illinois relies on the Mahomet Aquifer system as a source of
10their drinking water; and
 
11    WHEREAS, There are complex pathways between the surface and
12overlying aquifers to the principal aquifer in the eastern
13portion and no confining layer between the surface and the
14principal aquifer in the western portion, making the petitioned
15aquifer vulnerable to contamination; and
 
16    WHEREAS, The Safe Drinking Water Act gives the United
17States Environmental Protection Agency the authority to
18designate an aquifer as a sole or principal source of drinking
19water for a specified area; this designation allows the
20Environmental Protection Agency to review all federally-funded
21projects within the designated area to ensure they will not
22contaminate the aquifer; therefore, be it
 

 

 

HR0116- 2 -LRB099 07297 GRL 27404 r

1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
2NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
3urge the United States Environmental Protection Agency to
4classify the Mahomet Aquifer as a Sole Source Aquifer in order
5protect the residents of east-central Illinois and ensure they
6have clean drinking water for future generations; and be it
7further
 
8    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
9presented to United States Environmental Protection Agency
10Region 5 Coordinator William Spaulding, the members of the
11Illinois congressional delegation, and the Governor.