City Proposes Ban on New Drinking Wells

A proposed city ordinance could prohibit Darien residents from digging new wells that would be used to tap potable drinking water. 

The city is considering the move because it would speed up the environmental review process on the gas-contaminated former BP station property at Cass Avenue and Plainfield Road, Assistant City Administrator Scott Coren said at Monday’s meeting. 

If the city were to continue allowing new drinking wells, as part of the BP site’s cleanup process it would have to present a plan addressing how it would deal with possible water contamination, Coren said.

City Council was slated to vote on the ordinance last Monday as part of the consent agenda.

Ward 7 Alderman Halil Avci, however, objected to the ordinance being on the consent agenda without previously appearing before one of the city’s committees.

“We’re being asked to approve an ordinance that residents had no knowledge of up until tonight,” he said. “I think it’s premature to vote.” 

Avci said that he also felt the ordinance was overly broad by covering the whole city rather than just the area directly surrounding the BP site.

“You’re taking a small problem, you might have a mosquito you want to get rid of and you could do it with a fly swatter,” he said. “You’re taking a bulldozer and applying it to the whole city.”

With , Avci said there might be a renewed interest among residents in finding their own water supply. 

Coren said no one has applied to dig a new well in Darien in recent memory.

Passing such an encompassing ordinance is a best practice cities commonly use to expedite environmental remediation efforts, he said.

An ordinance that covered only the downtown area surrounding the BP site would not speed up the process of getting the all clear from the Illinois EPA, City Administrator Bryon Vana said. 

Groundwater beneath the BP site has been tested and is within an acceptable standard, according to a city memo. 

The ordinance would not impact existing wells or wells that would be used solely for activities such as washing cars and watering lawns, Coren said. 

The council decided to table the issue and discuss it at this Monday’s Administrative and Finance Committee meeting before rehearing it at the Feb. 21 City Council meeting.