Public hearing held on plan to pull 8.2M gallons/day from Lake Michigan for Waukesha drinking water



WAUKESHA -- The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday, Aug. 20 let the public weigh in on a plan to pull drinking water from Lake Michigan.

City leaders want to build a 10-mile pipeline to pull up to 8.2 million gallons per day from the lake. The treated wastewater would then be sent back to the lake.

"We have a great vast group of citizens interested in, not only projects like this, but impacts to resources, so it's important for us to solicit those comments to make informed decisions," said Ben Callan with the DNR.

City leaders said the groundwater they use for drinking is contaminated with radium, and that's why they want lake water.

The construction on the pipelines, if approved, would start in spring 2020.