SIUE East St. Louis Campus Hosts U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth and U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski’s Metro East Water Infrastructure Community Day
Legislators Give Updates on Water Infrastructure Improvement Projects
Flooded neighborhoods and sewage backed up in homes were a few project updates that U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13), along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), spoke about during a Community Day on Friday, Sept. 12 at the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville East St. Louis Center.
Duckworth and Budzinski addressed a crowd of approximately 100 people in the Multipurpose Room in Building D on the Wyvetter H. Younge Higher Education Campus. Metro East residents learned more about the latest updates on flood mitigation and water infrastructure improvements throughout Cahokia Heights, East St. Louis and the region. The legislators also shared their efforts at the federal level to bring funding and oversight to water infrastructure projects throughout the region, received status updates on ongoing improvement projects from USACE and local officials and heard again first-hand accounts of the difficulties facing some residents.
“For years, I’ve been working to bring awareness to the longstanding flooding and environmental issues that plague this region and bring in more funding and oversight,” said Duckworth, co-chair and co-founder of the U.S. Senate’s first ever Environmental Justice Caucus. “It took decades of neglect, lack of investment or resources and environmental racism to get here, and that’s unacceptable. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished in the past few years, but I know it’s not enough and more must be done. One grant, one project, one piece of legislation isn’t going to fix these issues. We need a whole of government approach, bringing together federal, state and local agencies to support a full, comprehensive overhaul of the region’s water infrastructure.”
“Addressing the longstanding infrastructure issues in the Metro East is one of my top priorities. Today’s event was an opportunity to give the community an update on some of the projects we have underway, as well as to share resources to support residents in the wake of severe storms and flooding,” said Budzinski, who among the different committees and boards is a member of the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition. “Thanks to the strong partnerships we’ve built and the hard work of dedicated federal, state and local leaders, I’m proud to say that we’ve begun to make real progress on this issue. We certainly have a long road ahead of us, but I feel confident we are on the right track to not just mitigate, but to prevent the sewage backups and overflows that have plagued this region for far too long.”
Duckworth provided detail about the multi-million-dollar flooding and infrastructure projects that she has worked to advance for more than 15 years.
“I’ve seen the sewage backup in your basement and yards,” Duckworth continued. “I will do whatever I can to bring funding to Cahokia Heights and the entire region.”
Budzinski went on to highlight two different projects for the residents. She briefly explained plans for the construction of a new east interceptor in Cahokia Heights.
“The interceptor sewer collects all of the wastewater and storm water for the city, and sends it to the treatment facility,” said Budzinski. “If the interceptor is backed up or deteriorated, then it backs up the whole system. It is this project that Sen. Duckworth and I are teamed up on to request new congressional funds specifically designated for the building of a new east interceptor.”
Also, it has been requested for the Army Corps Engineers to conduct a new general reevaluation report across the whole region.
“The last time the Metro East was evaluated by the Corps for new projects was decades ago,” informed Budzinski. “And we know the community has changed, the infrastructure has deteriorated, and that we have more severe weather and flooding happening on a regular basis. The new report will determine where we can get additional federal support in building new infrastructure.”
“We know that communication, transparency and accountability around all of this work are truly fundamental in getting these issues that have been going on for far too long to finally reach a resolution,” added Budzinski, noting that U.S. Sen Dick Durbin (D-IL.), who could not attend, has been a partner in the work.
Also addressing the crowd about efforts to get better infrastructure for storm and water resources were Kelly, PMP, deputy commanding general of Civil and Emergency Operations, and James M. Jennings, acting director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
After the meeting, Budzinski spoke to several Metro East homeowners and residents.
“My house has been sinking since 2002,” said Walter Byrd, of Cahokia Heights, who has been in his home since 1999. “They put in a new lift station, and the water still started coming back up. When it rains, it’s going to flood.”
“The flooding goes into my basement,” said Dermont Odneal, of Cahokia Heights, who has been in his home since 2005. “We try to clean the mold out, but we can’t get it all. The flood waters have messed up my furnace, my washer and dryer and my deep freezer. I’ve been looking around, trying to move, but it’s hard to sell.”
Byrd, who is on a C-PAP machine and concerned for his health, said he has limited choices of moving. “I built my home with my retirement money. Where am I going to go?”
The Community Day had resources available provided through the following agencies: Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois Department of Insurance, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Illinois Office of Water Resources, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Urban League Metropolitan St. Louis, Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security and Heartland Conservancy.
Other legislators at the event included Illinois Sen. Christopher Belt, (D-57th District), Illinois Sen. Erica Harriss (R-56th District) and Illinois State Rep. Kevin Schmidt, (R-114th District).
Photos:
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (top right) and U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski’s (top left) hosted the Metro East Water Infrastructure Community Day at the SIUE East St. Louis Center.
