MEMORIAL RESOLUTION FOR BOARD MEETING OF JULY 17, 2025
Title
RESOLUTION sponsored by the Board of Commissioners recognizing the importance of water reuse
Body
WHEREAS, the mission of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (District) is to protect the health and safety of the public in its service area, protect the quality of the water supply source (Lake Michigan), improve the quality of water in watercourses in its service area, protect businesses and homes from flood damage, and manage water as a vital resource for its service area; and
WHEREAS, the District’s treated effluent is of sufficient quality for use in irrigation, commercial, and industrial applications, often without further treatment, and two of the District’s Water Reclamation Plants (WRPs) (Kirie and Egan) already provide treated effluent to local park districts; and
WHEREAS, the District recognizes that the understanding of water reuse has evolved significantly, from irrigation and industrial cooling water to acknowledgement of de facto reuse in the global water cycle. Therefore, water should be judged by its quality instead of history; and
WHEREAS, the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact requires that diverted water be returned to the Basin in an effort to preserve its hydrologic balance. This requirement is conceptually aligned with the USEPA’s framework for indirect potable reuse, where treated water is reintroduced into natural systems before being used again; and
WHEREAS, water can be treated to any quality, and according to the CDC, “no matter how dirty water starts out, it can be treated to make it safe”; and
WHEREAS, water reuse can be implemented across a range of scales. For example, decentralized systems such as the non-potable reuse infrastructure at the Domino Sugar Refinery Redevelopment in Brooklyn, NY, support onsite commercial and residential water reuse. At the municipal level, communities like Pingree Grove, Illinois, operate reclaimed water irrigation systems that distribute treated effluent for public use; and
WHEREAS, benefits of water reuse include environmental justice outcomes such as improved water affordability and more equitable access to clean water. Additional benefits include improved water quality through reduced nutrient loss and fertilizer use, and conservation of freshwater resources by lowering demand and reducing water export from the watershed. Economic benefits include a cost-stable and drought-resilient water supply; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, to advance water reuse in a practical, cost-effective, and phased manner, the Board of Commissioners suggests the following sequence of actions:
• Conducting a targeted survey of potential non-potable reuse customers within one year of approval of this Resolution with the goal of identifying at least one potentially viable pilot reuse study;
• If a viable water reuse project is identified based on the results of the survey, it will be presented to the Board of Commissioners for consideration and approval to negotiate an agreement with potential customers and stakeholders and initiated within 36 months from the conclusion of the targeted survey; and
• Actively pursuing external funding sources and cost sharing arrangements, such as:
o The Water Research Foundation;
o The Illinois Section of the WateReuse Association;
o Current Water; and
o State and federal infrastructure or climate resilience grant programs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Resolution be spread upon the permanent Record of Proceedings of the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
Dated: July 17, 2025