The Central Lake County Joint Action Water Agency (CLCJAWA) was formed in 1986 to provide a reliable source of drinking water to a dozen communities in Lake County, Illinois. With decreased water demand due to increases in water usage efficiencies over the last 20-30 years, CLCJAWA was able to share their excess treatment capacity to provide treated Lake Michigan water to additional communities in the region.
Six new communities were recently added to the CLCJAWA transmission system as a result of the design and construction of approximately 23 miles of new transmission mains that now serve more than 260,000 people.
In designing a project of this length and magnitude, the route of the new transmission mains traveled through varying landscapes requiring a mix of open trench and trenchless construction. Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) was used to cross roads, avoid wetlands, save existing landscaping, and minimize disruptions to the residents. Overall, the project included over 11,000 feet of HDD in pipe sizes ranging from 10-inch to 24-inch diameter
