Alliance for the Great Lakes v. Department of Natural Resources

Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
Environmental Law
Citation
Case Number: 
2020 IL App (1st) 182587
Decision Date: 
Friday, February 21, 2020
District: 
1st Dist.
Division/County: 
Cook Co., 5th Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed.
Justice: 
HOFFMAN

(Court opinion corrected 3/11/20.) Plaintiffs filed action for administrative review of final order of Illinois DNR granting petition for Chicago Water Reclamation DIstrict to modify permit to divert water from Lake Michigan. Consent decree imposed by U.S. Supreme Court and codified in Level of Lake Michigan Act allows Illinois to divert water into Chicago and Calumet rivers to maintain it in a reasonably satisfactory sanitary condition. DNR did not err in determining that Rule 310 did not require a water needs analysis pursuant to Rule 304. Te Act does not require Department to consider a permittee's water conservation practices to determine its modified water allocation. Rule 307 provides the exclusive list of conservation practices that DNR could require as a condition in the modified permit.Requiring each permittee to comply with specific conservation practices applicable under Rule 307 fulfills DNR's obligations under section 5 of the Act. DNR did not err when it determined District's modified allocation amount based on a 95% compliance rate with PCB's DO standard. (ROCHFORD and DELORT, concurring.)