City Council Calls for Chicago River Cleanup

CHICAGO, IL—The Chicago City Council heard testimony today regarding the debate over cleaning up the Chicago River. Representatives from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), the body that operates treatment plants that dump partially treated sewage into the waterways, spoke, as well as representatives from numerous groups advocating for an end to the polluting practice that has been at the heart of ongoing legal battles.

Almost every other metropolitan area in the United States disinfects the water put back into rivers to kill off bacteria that might otherwise threaten human health. At the conclusion of today's City Council hearing, the Health & Environmental Protection Committee proposed a resolution expressing support for cleaning up the Chicago River.

Following are comments from groups represented at the hearing:

• "These rivers are Chicago’s second waterfront—it’s time we stop treating them like an open sewer," said Stacy Myers-Glen, policy coordinator for Openlands. "People today are getting wet—when they roll their kayaks or tip their canoes, they can get a mouthful of river water that is teeming with Giardia, Salmonella, Cryptosporidium and other diseases. Kids wade in the shallows of the Calumet River to escape the summer heat. We need to protect them. MWRD needs to kill off bugs that make people sick."
• "MWRD has been disinfecting their effluent in the suburbs for years. Chicago taxpayers are paying for clean, safe rivers in DuPage County, and they deserve the same level of protection," said Jack Darin, Director of the Sierra Club, Illinois Chapter. "MWRD should stop wasting so much money on lawyers fighting the Clean Water Act, and put those dollars to work cleaning up the Chicago River."
• "The Chicago River is an economic, natural, and recreational treasure that flows through dozens of Chicago communities," said Margaret Frisbie, Executive Director of Friends of the Chicago River. "It is time to stop fighting about when, and work together to clean up the water."
• "For less than the cost of a cup of coffee, we can eliminate a serious health threat to everyone recreating on or near the river system that snakes through much of Chicagoland," said Natural Resources Defense Council Attorney Ann Alexander. "We are talking less than a dollar to do what US EPA is demanding. There just aren’t excuses for MWRD to spend millions of dollars to fight for the right to pollute our waterways."
• "MWRD should listen to the public and step up, clean up, and disinfect the Chicago River," said Howard Learner, Executive Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. "Let’s make the Chicago River a true community asset that we can enjoy and be proud of."

Founded in 1963, Openlands protects the natural and open spaces of northeastern Illinois and the surrounding region to ensure cleaner air and water, protect natural habitats and wildlife, and help balance and enrich our lives.

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