25% Of La Grange Water Unaccounted For

LA GRANGE, IL — La Grange officials say a big leak is likely the reason that the village is seeing an increase in the percentage of water pumped into its system that is accounted for.

According to a village report, La Grange is billing for about 75 percent of the water that it pumps in from neighboring McCook, which gets its supply from Chicago. This leaves a quarter of the water unaccounted for. It is lost through leaks or inaccuracies in billing or meters, officials say. In the long run, the village's water customers end up paying for this unaccounted-for supply.

A few years ago, the village reduced the amount of unaccounted-for water to 15 percent, which was the case as recently as 2017, saving the village water system $250,000 a year. This followed a meter replacement program. According to the U.S. EPA, the leakage in public water systems averages at 16 percent.

In recent months, the village's unaccounted-for water has increased to 25 percent. This is not entirely surprising with an older water system with mains dating back to 1900, said Ryan Gillingham, La Grange's public works director.

"La Grange has made a significant investment in lowering the (unaccounted-for) water rate by replacement of every meter in the village," Gillingham said Tuesday in an interview with Patch.

The increase in the unaccounted-for rate likely means that a big leak has gone undiscovered, according to a village memo. To address the issue, the village hired a leak-locating company to survey the entire village for leaks. And it is continuing audits of water meters to make sure all users are being accounted for correctly.

Several minor leaks have been found, the memo said, but none of the repairs have resulted in major reductions to the unaccounted-for rate.

The village's goal is to maintain cash reserves in its water account equivalent to about 50 percent of operating expenses. Now, it's at 7.5 percent. To shore up the account, the village is planning no water main replacement projects or other capital improvement projects for the next budget year, which starts May 1.