Powerpoint discussing conservation-oriented pricing of water in Northeastern Illinois

This document provides a review of policies and programs addressing water bill affordability issues and equitable access to water. Five broad strategies are discussed, including: cost reduction, water efficiency, rate design, customer assistance programs, and hard to reach programs. For each solution, a definition, implementation considerations, examples, and potential recommendations are provided. More extensive case studies from a handful of water systems and a brief summary of the literature reviewed is also included. Results will be used to inform a community water affordability technical assistance program.

This report represents an important first step in quantifying the extent of the water affordability problem in northeastern Illinois, and exploring strategies for tackling this growing challenge.

Overview of the implementation of a local comprehensive water master plan.

What is the right price for water? It depends on whom you ask. Every community has unique needs and must decide what it wants to achieve with water rates—revenue recovery, revenue stability, affordability, economic development, encouraging efficient use of water, to name a few. This factsheet discusses rate design to encourage efficient water use, in other words, conservation pricing.

Through the decision support system, Tipping Point Planner (tippingpointplanner.org), communities in Great Lakes states can plan for a sustainable future by directly linking data to the local decision-making process. With help from trained facilitators, Tipping Point Planner enables professional as well as citizen participation in the land use planning and management process, including maintaining projects using a HUC 12 watershed scale. The program provides information, tools, and resources to help communities work with diverse stakeholders to:

• Examine past and predicted land-use changes
• Identify environmental threats
• Define natural resource assets in need of protection or restoration
• Explore land-use strategies and policies that enhance local values
• Gain the framework to define a community’s priorities through interactive community visioning exercises

The curriculum contains education materials and resources to support community planning for land use and natural resource management. The following curriculum chapters are available for download:

• Tipping Point Planner Introduction
• Planning Tools for Land Use and Natural Resource Management
• Tipping Point Planner Modules

To learn more about facilitated community action planning program offerings, please visit www.purdue.edu/fnr/extension/scep/programs/tipping-point-planner

To download this resource visit the Purdue Extension EdStore at https://mdc.itap.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=ID-514-TPP.

Overview of funded research in Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant in 2016

Feature Headlines

• Indiana Bans 28 Invasive Aquatic Plants
• 500 New Aquaculture Businesses Grow in Africa
• Doing Real Science Inspires Great Lakes Students
• Consumers Would Pay More for U.S. Seafood
• Large Sprawling Yards can Lean to More Runoff

Feature Headlines

• Strategies for Water Conservation: Is the Price Right?
• Wingspread Accord Expands its Reach
• Restoration Master Plans Build on Community Clean Ups
• SOLEC Spotlights Great Lakes Nearshore Conditions
• Invasive Hydroid may Strain Food Source of Young Fish