State and federal officials are limiting where Lockport engineers can dig for public water wells because an endangered dragonfly species has a home in the city.
"I don't see how a dragonfly on an island in the Des Plaines River stops us from digging for water throughout the entire city," said Ald. Darren Deskin, 3rd, after a meeting when city officials mentioned the issue Wednesday night.
Mayor Steve Streit said he'd like to know where state and federal officials would stand if it came between the dragonfly and people having access to drinking water.
He said he'd like to invite members of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and any state or federal elected representatives to defend their stance at a public meeting in Lockport.
The Hine's emerald dragonfly was thought to be extinct by the mid-1900's, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website, but was discovered alive in 1988 in the Des Plaines River valley.
The site states that the dragonfly also was discovered in areas in Wisconsin, Michigan and Missouri living on groundwater-fed wetlands that are perched over limestone bedrock.
The dragonfly's protected habitat in Lockport is on an island in the Des Plaines River about two miles south of the downtown Ninth Street (Route 7) bridge.
The dragonfly was listed as an endangered species in 1995. There are about 10 known breeding grounds in Illinois for the dragonfly, including breeding grounds in Will County covering about five square miles, according to experts. A secondary habitat covers areas within about 40 square miles in Lemont, Homer Glen and Romeoville.
Lockport's engineering director, Amy Wagner, said state and federal agencies have created a protected buffer zone around the island greatly limiting where engineers can dig shallow water wells.
Ben Benson, Lockport city administrator, said engineers can't dig deep water wells because the adjacent city of Joliet is using much of that resource in the region.
The water supply topic came up as the city is considering hiring Strand Associates to re-drill one of its existing wells after it recently collapsed, Wagner said.
She said the city also is considering hiring Strand to put together a future water supply report, but preliminary findings were disheartening because of the restrictions aimed at protecting the dragonfly.
As the city approves more and more plans for residential subdivisions and light industrial developments, Benson said, Lockport's water needs will grow, but "there isn't an urgent need for (more) water in Lockport, right now."
He said a likely site for a new shallow water well would be in an area on the northwest side of the city out of the dragonfly buffer zone to service Lockport's short-term water needs.
But if city officials can't convince state and federal officials to reduce the restrictions on shallow wells, perhaps by reducing the buffer zone, the city will need to consider other water resource alternatives for the future. He said those can include buying Lake Michigan water from suppliers or becoming part of a coalition of communities in the area that are looking to transport water from the Kankakee River area, Benson said.
The Lockport City Council is scheduled to approve hiring Strand at its July 15 meeting — $41,700 to re-drill a collapsed well and $34,600 to put together a future water supply report.
Frank Vaisvilas is a freelancer for the Daily Southtown.