It’s been four-and-a-half years since a group of homeowners north of Mahomet have had clean water from their wells.
Their plight began in 2016 when a natural gas leak from the People’s Gas station contaminated their property’s water source and seeped into the Mahomet Aquifer.
The Mahomet Aquifer supplies drinking water to half a million homes in Eastern and Central Illinois.
In 2016 Newcomb Township residents experienced sputtering water from the faucets and after a shower, they felt a film on their skin. One homeowner could even set their faucet on fire with a torch because of the amount of gas running through the system.
After months of asking questions, it was revealed that natural gas leak at Peoples Gas’ storage facility known as Manlove Field, located on Route 47 just south of County Road 2800 North in rural Mahomet, had spread into the groundwater.
That water is still contaminated today.
Homeowners are still receiving bottled water, and were given a filtration system from People’s Gas.
But Senate Bill 2633, which passed in the Illinois Senate last week, may be the next step to restoring clean water to these residents.
The bill will allow Sangamon Valley Water District to annex the territories to the north and west of their boundary into their jurisdiction in order to run public water lines to 26 residents.
Funding for the project is still pending, though. In June 2020, $3.8 million in State funds were approved through the capital appropriations bill. Those dollars would fund water main extensions running north on IL-47 and east on 2500 N. That money has not been released yet.
An additional $6.8 million would be needed to get water to the homes.
“It’s awesome that we’re getting this done for the people affected by the gas leak. It’s our job to provide clean water, and we’re happy to work with Senator (Chapin) Rose to move this forward,” said Kerry Gifford, General Manager of Sangamon Valley Public Water District.
The bill was passed unanimously in the Senate last week. Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives Emanuel Chris Welch has sponsored the bill in the House.
