Minnesotans Overwhelmingly Speak Out Against Waukesha Diversion Plan →

Wisconsin Public Radio, March 4, 2016
Author: Danielle Kaeding

Not a single person spoke in favor of Waukesha’s plan to get drinking water from Lake Michigan at a public hearing Thursday evening in Duluth, Minnesota.

About 100 people attended the hearing, many of them questioning whether the city meets the standards to divert water under the Great Lakes Compact. Eight governors signed the compact in 2008, agreeing to collectively manage the lakes and ban diversions from the basin, with few exceptions. Waukesha is the first eligible city to request an average of 10.1 million gallons a day from Lake Michigan. However, many of the plan's critics claim the city is asking for more water than it needs to satisfy growth and expansion plans.