Monday, March 31, 2008 : 1:40 p.m.

Citizen Based Water-Resources Planning in Illinois

David R. Larson, Beverly L. Herzog, CGWP, Edward Mehnert and Donald A. Keefer, Illinois State Geological Survey

The severe drought of 2005 that affected central and northern Illinois provided the impetus for Governor  SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1Blagojevich to order the development of a strategy for comprehensive, statewide water supply planning and management.  Citing the need for sound planning in the management of the state’s water resources, the Governor’s Executive Order 2006-1 called for at least two locally based, regional water-supply planning committees to be organized and to participate in the development and approval of regional plans.  The committees would receive financial and technical support from the state through IDNR Office of Water Resources, and would help to collect the information needed for the planning process.  Drawing on the experience of the Texas Water Development Board for a grass-roots, bottom-up approach to water-resources planning, two committees were organized to test the suitability of this approach to water-resources planning in Illinois, and assess the feasibility of applying it statewide.  The two committees were formed with representatives from a wide range of stakeholder groups.  The Northeastern Illinois Regional Water Supply Planning Group includes 32 members selected by caucuses of nine stakeholder groups from 11 counties in the greater Chicago region.  Organization of the Group was facilitated by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.  The East-Central Illinois Regional Water Supply Planning Committee has 12 members selected from twelve stakeholder groups from the 15 counties located in east-central Illinois.  Organization of the Committee was facilitated by the Mahomet Aquifer Consortium.  These planning bodies are integral to the planning process.  Both are working with a consultant to develop water-demand forecasts to 2050, and with state officials on assessing the water-supply potential.  Both groups are learning about strategies for implementing plans to meet the increasing demand.  To facilitate public outreach and education within their regions, both groups have established websites.

David R. Larson, Illinois State Geological Survey David R. Larson is the head of the Hydrogeology Section at the Illinois State Geological Survey. He joined the ISGS in 1991 after working for the North Dakota State Water Commission in Bismarck, and before that, for the Nebraska Conservation and Survey Division-UNL in Lincoln. Dave has more than 32 years of experience in ground water resources research and management. He holds a B.A. degree in geology from SUNY Fredonia, and an M.S. degree in geology from the University of Nebraska. He currently serves on the NGWA Publishing Oversight Committee.

Beverly L. Herzog, CGWP, Illinois State Geological Survey Beverly L. Herzog is a senior hydrogeologist and Assistant to the Chief for Environmental Initiatives at the Illinois State Geological Survey. She is also currently serving as past chairman of the Association of Ground Water Scientists and Engineers, a division of the National Ground Water Association. Herzog has a B.S. degree in geology from the UW-Oshkosh, an M.S. degree in hydrology from Stanford University, and nearly 30 years of experience in groundwater research. She is a Certified Ground Water Professional and a Registered Professional Geologist in Illinois.

Edward Mehnert, Illinois State Geological Survey Ed Mehnert is Senior Geohydrologist with the Illinois State Geological Survey. He earned a PhD (Civil Engineering) from the University of Illinois and has served as an Associate Editor for Ground Water. He has researched contaminant transport in various geological settings and is currently involved with MMV activities for the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium.

Donald A. Keefer, Illinois State Geological Survey Don Keefer is a Geologist and the Director of the Geologic Mapping and Hydrogeology Center at the Illinois State Geological Survey. Don's research interests include the mapping and characterization of heterogeneous geologic systems, the estimation of uncertainty in geologic maps and the advancement of 3-D geologic mapping and visualization technologies.


2008 Ground Water Summit