Letter to the editor: Support Waukesha’s water application

Editor:

The working men and women of Plumbers Local 75, as well as the members of our statewide organization, the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association, stand behind the city of Waukesha in its efforts to get its water from Lake Michigan.

The $200 million project will bring about 300 full-time jobs to the area during construction. This project will not only bring an economic boom to the area, but a safe and reliable water source.

Although Waukesha is currently providing local groundwater to its residents, the water’s level of radium exceeds federal drinking water standards and is not a sustainable solution to the city’s water needs.

The Department of Natural Resources concluded after years of study that Waukesha should have access to Lake Michigan water and we agree. Years of research and good planning has brought Waukesha to this crucial point. We believe the decision on an issue as important as this should be supported by facts and take into consideration what kind of economic impact it will have on the region.

In addition to providing Waukesha residents with the high-quality water they certainly deserve, moving forward with the Lake Michigan water diversion plan will provide full-time work for about 300 hard-working Wisconsinites. The benefits of approving Waukesha’s plan will be realized not only by its residents, but also by those workers, contractors and suppliers who will contribute to the infrastructure’s development.

If it is granted access, Waukesha will be returning the same amount of water back to the lake, causing no net effect on lake water levels. With that in mind, supporting a $200 million project that will create about 300 full-time jobs during the three years of construction is just common sense.

— Spencer Statz, Plumbers Local 75