Contact: Dan Duchniak, (262) 409-4440 w, (262) 352-5142 c
[email protected]

Shawn N. Reilly, Mayor of the City of Waukesha, issued the following statement regarding the Great Lakes Compact Council’s decision to reaffirm its approval for Waukesha to access Lake Michigan as its future drinking water source.

“Today was a tremendous day for the citizens of Waukesha and the future of our city,” Mayor Reilly announced.

“The decision by the Governors of all eight Great Lakes states as members of the Great Lakes Compact Council, unanimously decided to allow Lake Michigan water to be loaned to the city of Waukesha. The decision includes the provision that Waukesha will return 100 percent of the borrowed water to Lake Michigan via the Root River. The decision was based on facts, science and the Great Lakes Compact Council’s exacting standards for borrowing and returning Great Lakes water. The Compact Council made the right call last year, and unanimously affirmed that today. We appreciate their dedication in examining the facts of our application and how our circumstances are unique.

“This has been a team effort, and we wouldn’t have gotten this far without the diligence and support of the Waukesha Common Council, the Waukesha Water Utility Commission and utility staff, as well as the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Their hard work resulted in the 3,000-page application that proved our case to the other states and provinces that Lake Michigan water is our only reasonable alternative.

“Today’s decision is another step toward providing the 71,000 residents of Waukesha with a clean, reliable and sustainable drinking water source.

“We hope those who filed this appeal will end their opposition and join us in creating a world-class water program that will not only serve our community well into the next century but also be the standard for sustainability and protecting our Great Lakes while improving the quality of the Root River.”

 

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