Water Management Division

Water is a precious commodity and water conservation should be taken seriously. 

Here are a few water conservation tips that can be practiced in your home.

• Don’t leave the hose running while washing your car.
• Laundry - A washing machine will use about 40 gallons of water per load whether it is a week’s worth of laundry or a couple of towels. The same idea works for dishwashers. Save up for a full load or use the proper setting for smaller loads.
• Showers can use up to 10 gallons of water per minute. A five-minute shower can use 50 gallons of water and excessive showers can be an extravagant waste of water.
• Water Management urges all homeowners and businesses to check all plumbing fixtures for possible leaks, especially in the bathroom. Leaks left undetected can amount to gallons of water being wasted. Remember all water is metered.
• There are many ways to conserve water by being aware of the sound of running water and getting to the source of it.
• Toilets are notorious for their hidden leaks and can waste thousands of gallons of water a day left undetected, so it is important to check them periodically. Don’t use your toilet to flush things such as tissue paper, cigarette butts, gum wrappers, and other small items.
• When remodeling use water-saving fixtures.

• Maintains over 60 miles of water main ranging in size from 6 inches to 20 inches in diameter
• Maintains 750 fire hydrants and flush them on a yearly basis
• Repair or replace broken water mains, water services, and water meters
• Read 7,000 water meters each quarter

The purpose of the Water Division is to provide our customers with good clean potable drinking water. 

In January of 2004, a new state-of-the-art water pumping station was put into service along with a new 20-inch water distribution main. This will enable the division to provide all residential and commercial customers with the volume and pressure that is needed as well as the needs of the fire department in fighting fires. These needs can only be met through the efforts of all of the Water Division employees. No modern community, such as Evergreen Park, could exist without a modern water pumping station to supply safe drinking water to the public it serves. 

This division maintains over 65 miles of sanitary sewer and 50 miles of storm sewer each year by high-velocity flushing. 

Repairs are made by either replacing or relining the sewer line. All reconstruction of storm basins is performed by division employees.

Additional Information

• All water management division employees carry picture identification with them. Never allow anybody into your home without proper identification.
• Final meter readings are done by appointment. Please call the phone number listed above.
• Fire hydrant flushing is done twice a year.
• Most buildings have outside remote reading meters.
• Residential water meters are read and billed every three months.
• Sanitary sewers are jetted once a year.
• Sprinkling hours are from 7:00 am to 11:00 am and 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm from May 15 through September 15.
• Storm sewers are jetted and cleaned as needed.
• The Water Management Division owns and operates its own water systems.  We purchase our water from the city of Chicago.

The Basics of Illicit Discharges Into The Storm Sewer System

An understanding of the nature of illicit discharges in urban watersheds is essential to find, fix and prevent them:  

Illicit Discharge
The term "illicit discharge" has many meanings in regulation and practice, but we use a four-part definition.

1. Illicit discharges are defined as a storm drain that has measurable flow during dry weather containing pollutants and/or pathogens. A storm drain with measurable flow but containing no pollutants is simply considered a discharge.

2. Each illicit discharge has a unique frequency, composition, and mode of entry in the storm drain system.

3. Illicit discharges are frequently caused when the sewage disposal system interacts with the storm drain system. A variety of monitoring techniques is used to locate and eliminate illegal sewage connections. These techniques trace sewage flows from the stream or outfall, and go back up the pipes or conveyances to reach the problem connection.

4. Illicit discharges or other pollutants are produced from specific source areas and operations known as "generating sites". Knowledge about these generating sites can be helpful to locate and prevent non-sewage illicit discharges. Depending on the regulatory status of specific "generating sites", education, enforcement, and other pollution prevention techniques can be used to manage this class of illicit discharges.

Soil Erosion and Sediment Control
The Village of Evergreen Park requires an erosion control plan appropriate for each proposed development in incorporated Village areas.

See our Erosion and Sediment Control Plan (PDF).

 Runoff Creates Pollution
See how anything going down a street sewer can create contaminants; and how to avoid it (PDF)