During a public forum in Champaign, about 300 people urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to designate a major source of drinking water in the region as a sole source aquifer. The EPA is seeking public comment on the proposed designation for the Mahomet Aquifer, as a landfill looks at storing toxic chemicals above the site.
The landfill company says a liner will protect that water from PCB’s. The EPA designation could stop that by giving the agency the authority to review any federally funded project near the aquifer. Urbana resident Lois Kain says the designation is a no-brainer.
“This is our water. There is no other water here. If something were to happen to it, we’d be in a lot of trouble,” Kain said.
More than half of residents in east-central Illinois rely on the Mahomet Aquifer for their drinking water. The EPA will hold another public forum Wednesday night in Morton on the sole source designation. The agency says it could make a final decision in a couple of months.