MILWAUKEE — A task force appointed by the mayor to study massive sewage dumpings into Lake Michigan, a key Midwestern drinking water source, blamed the public, WISN-TV reported.
The panel, organized by Mayor Tom Barrett, reported this week that illegal sewer hookups and cracked sewer laterals throughout the metro area have boosted sewer flows in big rainstorms, causing the city's sewage department to dump millions of gallons of waste into the lake, the news station reported.
About 18 billion gallons of raw sewage have been dumped into Lake Michigan, a major drinking water source, and its tributaries since the tunnel system was completed a decade ago, including a record 4.6 billion gallons dumped in May, the story said.
But the task force stopped short of offering a solution to the problem, saying the city should consider investing $20 million in monitoring devices to find out where the big leaks and illegal hookups are, the report said.
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