Wisconsin City Prepares for First Diversion Under Great Lakes Compact

New Berlin, Wis., a Milwaukee suburb, will take water from the Great Lakes and ship it out of the watershed, the first diversion since the approval of the Great Lakes compact in October 2008, Greenwire reported.

The city hopes to begin deliveries by July, pending the approval of Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle (D). Because New Berlin straddles the divide between the Mississippi River watershed and the Great Lakes basin, it does not need approval from the other eight governors of Great Lakes states. The rules of the compact state that a community entirely in the Mississippi River watershed would require approval from all of the governors.

Officials from New Berlin are waiting for the approval of the Department of Natural Resources. They have promised to return as much or more water to the Great Lakes as they take out.

The city recently sent a one-time $1.5 million payment for the water to the city of Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

Source: Greenwire, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel