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📸 Credit: Kane County Shallow Groundwater Sustainability study
During this week’s Committee of the Whole meeting, Kane County officials got an update from hydrologist Dan Hadley on how local groundwater is holding up — and the findings show both progress and pressure points.
The Shallow Groundwater Sustainability Study, a collaboration between the Illinois State Water Survey and the county’s environmental and water resources department, is in progress but getting closer to wrapping up after several years of work funded through ARPA dollars.
Key things to know
Why it matters: Thousands of households and several Tri-Cities municipalities rely on shallow sand, gravel, and bedrock aquifers for drinking water, and those same aquifers keep streams flowing during dry months.
Usage down: Countywide water use has been lower than past models predicted, thanks to conservation and more efficient appliances.
Stress spots remain: Areas like Mill Creek and Blackberry Creek watersheds are seeing reduced stream baseflow, showing signs of long-term stress.
Road salt impact: In Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles, wells are showing higher chloride from winter salting — sometimes above the EPA’s guideline — and the county’s modeling suggests those levels could keep rising through 2050 if we stick with a “business as usual” approach.
The county is also expanding a real-time groundwater monitoring network, giving residents and officials better insight into local water levels and quality.
View a PDF of the presentation. Watch the full committee discussion recording.
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