MWRD: blows up 27,000 tons of rock for McCook Reservoir

We have already seen the valve they have built in the tunnel to the reservoir. Now they are blowing a hole in the floor of the McCook Quarry to meet that tunnel.

Screenshot from video

On July 6, the MWRD took a big step toward the completion of the McCook Reservoir, which is a major part of the MWRD’s Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP, or "Deep Tunnel”). Excavation of a 230’ x 130’ area began with a bang as 28,000 lbs. of explosives, requiring 996 detonators, were used to remove over 27,000 tons of limestone. This portion of the reservoir floor is being excavated to connect the reservoir to the primary drainage tunnel which is approximately 335 feet underground. This video shows three views of the blast, both in real time and at half speed.

The McCook Reservoir will be completed in two stages: stage one will be complete and online in 2017 and stage two will be complete and online in 2029. The reservoir will hold a total of 10 billion gallons of combined stormwater and sewage that otherwise would end up in waterways and basements. It will provide more than $100 million in annual benefits for 3.1 million people in 37 communities. It will protect over 1.2 billion structures including residences, businesses and other facilities.

Update: a bill is passed to fund the completion of this reservoir. That posting provides a couple more photos:

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MWRD posted some more photos of a publicity event with the comment:

We are talking Overflow Action Days with CBS 2 and Friends of the Chicago River today at McCook Reservoir. MWRD President Mariyana Spyropoulos and Friends' Executive Director Margaret Frisbie joined Channel 2's Roseanne Tellez for an interview at the construction site where the MWRD's "Deep Tunnel" will eventually spill out into the gigantic reservoir. The first phase of reservoir construction is set to be complete by the end of 2017 and will hold 3.5 billion gallons of combined stormwater and sewage that otherwise would be directed to our waterways. Because of the reservoir and the MWRD's Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP), the MWRD will be able to hold this water before it can be treated at our plants. Heavy storms can stress older Chicago area sewer systems, and when this happens a combined sewer overflow (CSO) can occur in the systems that are not separate. This CSO is a mixture of rain and wastewater that spills into waterways, sometimes including Lake Michigan. Although TARP has helped to greatly reduce the number of CSOs and the resulting water pollution, it cannot accomplish this stewardship alone. Area residents can help keep water from entering the water treatment system in the first place and thus reserve space in the sewers to accommodate rain water. Based on the concept of Ozone Action Days, Overflow Action alerts are sent to remind Friends' members to conserve water before and during rain events. Actions such as delaying showers or reducing their length, flushing less, and waiting to run the dishwasher can help reduce the amount of water in the sewer system. The next time it rains, think about taking action.

I don't care about the people in the foreground. But the backgrounds are interesting. And after the reservoir is first used, nobody is going to want to stand where these people are standing, including a photographer.

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I thought I had a posting about the hills that were built in a Forest Preserve. But I can't find it. So I'll note here that the work won a national award for building two man-made hills along the Centennial Trail in the Columbia Woods Forest Preserve.

Two more pictures were posted concerning more funding. At the end of the announcement is some history of the project:

The 109-mile tunnel portion of TARP, known as the “Deep Tunnel,” was completed in 2006, followed by the completion of construction on the Majewski Reservoir in the northwest suburbs in 1998 and the Thornton Composite Reservoir in the south suburbs in 2015.
This 3.5 billion gallon section of the McCook Reservoir will be completed by December 2017. The reservoir is part of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP) that captures and stores combined stormwater and sewage that would otherwise overflow from sewers into waterways or local basements during storms.

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Sun-Times article