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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF FRIENDS OF CHICAGO RIVER'S OVERFLOW ACTION DAYS
WHEREAS, the Chicago River system, including the Calumet River, is an important ecosystem that provides home to wildlife; a natural escape from urban pressure; and a corridor for fish, wildlife, and people to move through both urban and suburban neighborhoods, and
WHEREAS, Stormwater runoff and sewer overflows threaten the health of the Chicago River system; and
WHEREAS, As little as .3 inches of rainfall within the Chicago River sewershed can cause a sewer overflow, flushing harmful pollution such as untreated sewage and street debris directly into the Chicago River; and
WHEREAS, Heavy rains can also cause flooding and widespread property damage, and
WHEREAS, Over the past 100 years, the number of extreme rain events has doubled throughout the Midwest due to climate change; and
WHEREAS, More residents than ever before are using the Chicago River system to fish, kayak, row, run, and relax, live, and dine along, making water quality a public health priority; and
WHEREAS, A clean Chicago River system depends on both individual and municipal actions; and
WHEREAS, Chicagoans can help reduce the number of sewer overflows by participating in Friends of the Chicago River’s Overflow Action Days, an initiative aimed at reducing the amount of water consumed at home in order to increase water treatment capacity across the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s water reclamation plants; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Board of Commissioners of Cook County, that we support Overflow Action Days, which will engage stakeholders and partners to conserve water at home, and encourage implementation of Friends’ notification system to alert stakeholders and partners to the risk of sewer overflows as well as practices to protect waterways from harmful pollution that is released to the river; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we pledge to promote at-home and business water conservation practices and develop sustainable policies to manage stormwater and eliminate sewer overflows into the Chicago River system.
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