{"id":6714,"date":"2025-06-23T01:10:11","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T01:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/6714\/"},"modified":"2025-06-23T01:10:11","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T01:10:11","slug":"carpentersville-officials-work-to-find-fix-for-exposed-water-sewer-lines-following-dam-removal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/6714\/","title":{"rendered":"Carpentersville officials work to find fix for exposed water, sewer lines following dam removal"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0<\/a>
\n Gravel is being used as a temporary cover for exposed water and sewer lines north of where the Fox River dam once was in Carpentersville. Village officials said the lines, installed more than 60 years ago, remain in working order and are not leaking.
\n Rick West\/rwest@dailyherald.com<\/p>\n

Burying water and sewer lines exposed following a dam removal project could cost Carpentersville more than $3 million.<\/p>\n

Two water and two sewer lines were installed roughly 60 years ago at the bottom of the Fox River north of the Carpentersville dam. However, all four lines became exposed this spring after water levels along the Fox River decreased dramatically.<\/p>\n

The depth of the river dropped, in part, because of a project that removed the Carpentersville dam. Other factors include drought conditions and the temporary closure of the Stratton Lock and Dam in McHenry for the boating season.<\/p>\n

\u201cA year ago, it would have been underwater in the river,\u201d Carpentersville Village Manager Brad Stewart said. \u201cBut now, where the exposure was identified is the new shoreline.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a>
\n Carpentersville officials will have to bury water and sewer lines that were left exposed this spring following a dam removal project last fall. The village said that work could cost more than $3 million.
\n Rick West\/rwest@dailyherald.com<\/p>\n

The dam, which officials believe was built between 1839 and 1850, was removed last fall as part of a $1.2 million project by the Kane County Forest Preserve District.<\/p>\n

The project’s goal was to create a 10.2-mile stretch of unimpeded flow along the river and improve the health of the Fox River.<\/p>\n

Forest preserve officials anticipated the river level to drop following the dam removal. But Carpentersville officials said no one expected the water and sewer lines, which run under the river, to become exposed.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, we\u2019re disappointed,\u201d Carpentersville Village President John Skillman said,\u00a0adding the village did not control the dam removal project.<\/p>\n

Once the exposed lines were discovered in April, public works crews covered them with gravel. Stewart said water and sewer service has not been interrupted, and none of the exposed lines are leaking.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n Carpentersville officials first noticed the exposed water and sewer lines in April. The lines, which now are covered in gravel, are just north of where the dam once was.
\n Courtesy of the village of Carpentersville\n <\/p>\n

Village officials have contacted state agencies, including the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the Kane County Forest Preserve District and state representatives, to find a solution.<\/p>\n

Stewart said engineering work already has started to develop plans to merge the two water lines into one and the two sewer lines into one \u2014 and then bury the two new lines.<\/p>\n

State Rep. Suzanne Ness has secured state funding to help cover the costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe removal of the dam brings environmental benefits, including improved water flow, healthier ecosystems, and enhanced recreational opportunities,\u201d Ness said in an emailed statement. \u201cHowever, the removal also comes with some unexpected challenges. The $400,000 in funding that I have secured for the village of Carpentersville will address some of the issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a>
\n The Kane County Forest Preserve District removed\u00a0a dam in Carpentersville last fall to restore a natural flow to the Fox River. Drought conditions, however, have led to lower-than-anticipated water levels.
\n Rick West\/rwest@dailyherald.com<\/p>\n

Kane County Forest Preserve District officials could not be reached for comment about the exposed lines.<\/p>\n

When the dam was first removed, however, district officials said the river\u2019s edge could change as the river returned to a more natural flow.<\/p>\n

As part of the dam removal project, for example, the district extended out a kayak launch north of the dam as the river narrowed, said Jennifer Rooks-Lopez, the district\u2019s director of planning and land protection.<\/p>\n

In a spring interview, Rooks-Lopez noted the river\u2019s water levels were lower than anticipated due to drought conditions and the closure of the Stratton Lock and Dam.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really been an unusual spring for us,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a>
\n The shoreline along the Fox River through Carpentersville has changed following the removal of a dam.
\n Rick West\/rwest@dailyherald.com<\/p>\n

The low levels have led to criticism on social media of the dam removal project.<\/p>\n

However, Rooks-Lopez said other factors \u2014 including a drier-than-normal winter and the lack of rain in the spring \u2014 have played a large role in the river\u2019s current condition.<\/p>\n

As for the exposed lines, Stewart said he anticipates work to rectify the situation to start in the fall, but warned it may not be complete until next year.<\/p>\n

Skillman noted the village\u2019s predicament has caught the attention of other Fox River communities where dam removal is being considered.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery town is now looking at this and \u2026 saying \u2018could that happen here?\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u00a0 Gravel is being used as a temporary cover for exposed water and sewer lines north of where…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6715,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[8107,1109,746,50,159,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-6714","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-carpentersville","9":"tag-communities","10":"tag-environment","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-science","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114730016646559389","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6714","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6714\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}