Moline is trying to help the Illinois Department of Transportation keep the cost of the I-74 bridge project from rising and keep the Mississippi River clean.
Construction workers are digging a long trench for a new, six-foot storm sewer. But the ditch is quickly filling up with a lot more groundwater than anticipated.
Michelle O'Neill reports, the DOT came up with a plan to fix the problem.Radio story
Moline Public Works Director, JD Schulte, says first, the water will be pumped into four, large, blue, tanks to remove all the sediment. Drivers can see them sitting next to the Spiegel building along River Drive, just east of I-74.
The amount of water will be a huge increase for Moline's treatment plant, resulting in an increase in costs for the city. But Schulte says the city probably won't charge the Illinois DOT as much as required by an ordinance, which was written for much smaller amounts of water.
For example, the public works director says if Moline charged its usual rate of nearly two cents-a-gallon, the bill would be six or seven times higher than the rate it charges municipalities. Then the Illinois DOT would have to request a change order which could delay the project.
The new storm sewer is just one part of the $1.2 billion I-74 project, which includes the new bridge, nearly eight miles of interstate, and other infrastructure improvements.
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