After Days Of Torrential Rain, Chicago Releases Massive Amounts Of Sewage, Stormwater Into Lake

[hatrack]

After several days of rain, an overnight deluge overwhelmed Chicago's underground labyrinth of aging sewers and giant tunnels Thursday, forcing a noxious mix of sewage and stormwater into local waterways and Lake Michigan. The surge of murky, debris-strewn water so overloaded the system that sewage began to back up in basements and geysers of wastewater shot out of several sewer manholes — stomach-churning sights captured by smartphones and posted online.

To relieve the pressure, engineers at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District were forced to rely on the region's sewage outlet of last resort. For the first time since July 2011, they opened locks and sluice gates separating the Chicago River system from the lake, allowing millions of gallons of raw and partially treated waste to flow with runoff into the water supply for 7 million people in Chicago and the suburbs.

The district started by opening a sluice gate on the North Shore Channel in Wilmette at 1:25 a.m., then opened locks near Navy Pier at 3:47 a.m. When water levels began to rise dangerously high in the Cal-Sag Channel and Calumet River on the South Side, the district opened locks at 134th Street at 6:15 a.m.

It is unclear when the locks will be closed again, said Allison Fore, a district spokeswoman. Estimates of how much sewage-laden river water flowed into the lake won't be available until several days after the storms subside.

EDIT

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-flooding-locks-opened-20130419,0,2421472.story

[AnotherMcIntosh]

1. If climate change is going to be permanent, Rahm needs to use funds to expand the deep tunnel.