INDIANAPOLIS – As Indiana contemplates a massive and controversial water pipeline, a new study shows that the state’s water supply is “plentiful,” but not evenly distributed. Researchers said that caveat makes the completion of a statewide water management plan, driven by local input, even more urgent.
The report, released Monday, was commissioned by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. It follows a similar study on the state’s water supply released by the chamber a decade ago.
Greg Ellis, vice president of energy and environmental policy for the Indiana chamber, said the goal is to help set the stage for an integrated water management plan for the state — a key infrastructure and energy priority in the chamber’s Indiana Prosperity 2035 plan.
The latest study was prepared by Texas-based environmental consulting firm INTERA Incorporated, which has a Bloomington location.
“The Indiana Chamber has prioritized the state having superior infrastructure and energy through its latest visioning plan. The specific water goal is to invest in a framework and planning to address fresh and wastewater needs, regionally and statewide, to meet current and future demand for economic development,” Ellis said. “We believe this study offers the guidance to help us get there.”
The study doesn’t specifically focus on a much-debated plan to pipe water from an aquifer in Tippecanoe County to a mammoth industrial campus in Boone County, though researchers did note that the project “has brought the conversation about water resource planning and industrial development to the forefront.”
The project supported by Indiana economic development officials — dubbed the Limitless Exploration/Advanced Pace (LEAP) Research and Innovation District — could bring construction of a pipeline that stretches 50 miles, carrying up to 100 million gallons of water daily.
Read the entire Casey Smith story for the Indiana Capital Chronicle, here.
