Indiana American Water (IAW) works to provide safe, quality water to everyone in the Region through its Northwest Indiana district. In addition, it’s also a regional water supplier for many Region cities through wholesale contracts. The company has been providing Northwest Indiana with water and for over a century - 114 years to be exact.
The story begins with the steel mills in what is known today as Gary, Indiana. In 1901, the Inland Steel Company built a plant along the Lake Michigan Shoreline. Not too long after, the U.S. Steel Corporation found a spot just east of that location.
Shortly after both mills established their positions in the area, Gary Land Company, a subsidiary of Indiana Steel, came in and formed a plan for constructing mills and a harbor. In this plan was also the original water system.
The rise of steel mills in Gary called for a new water treatment design in 1906. In addition to the treatment, this also included a pumping facility and a three-mile long hand-dug brick-lined tunnel and lake intake.
A few years later in July of 1909, the Jefferson Park Pumping Station began to pump water to local residents and businesses.
“Some of these facilities are still in use today at the company’s Borman Park facility,” said External Affairs Manager Joe Loughmiller in a press release.
Fast forward to 1999, when Indiana American Water purchased the Northwest Indiana system. Over the past couple of decades, significant investments have been made to help improve the system in the area.
“We have invested more than $400 million in our water infrastructure in Northwest Indiana,” said Loughmiller. “This includes $50 million for a new Lake Michigan supply tunnel and pump station, $120 million to replace and relocate water mains and hydrants, and more than $85 million for over and above tunnel projects on our treatment, pumping, storage, and operation facilities. In the last six years alone, Indiana American Water has invested more than $620 million in our infrastructure across the state, including approximately $150 million in Northwest Indiana.”
Lake Michigan serves as the main supply source for Northwest Indiana operations. The drinking water sourced from the lake is even labeled as a premium product in the area since it’s softer than groundwater and also quite pure.
“It is the only system we own in Indiana that relies totally on a surface water source,” Loughmiller said.
In fact, the Great Lakes as a whole is the largest surface freshwater system on Earth, and two of those lake intakes and treatment facilities make up the Northwest Indiana Operations. In addition, a groundwater treatment facility purchased from the City of Lake Station serves as a backup water treatment facility.
“The Borman Park filtration plant, rated at 54 million gallons per day (mgd) is in Lake County in the north-central section of the City of Gary. The Ogden Dunes filtration plant, capable of treating 24 mgd, is in Porter County at the west edge of the Town of Ogden Dunes,” Loughmiller said.
At the bottom of Lake Michigan lies intakes to the surface water treatment plants. These work to supply fresh water to the plants to undergo treatment and disinfection. This includes filtration, disinfection using chloramines, and fluoridation.
“We’re proud of the quality we provide to our customers in Northwest Indiana. About a quarter of a million people depend on us every day for their water,” Loughmiller said.
In 2017, Indiana American Water became the first water utility in the state to file a lead service line plan that followed the passage of the House Enrolled Act no. 1519. The plan included a way for water utilities to replace customer-owned lead service lines, even though the utilities don’t have direct ownership of the lines. The water company is also replacing outdated lead service lines through its lead service line (LSL) replacement program.
Lead was commonly found for connections between a house and the utility water main prior to World War II. Many lines in the Region continued to use lead even up until the 1970s, and the material was also a component of solder used in copper pipe connections and brass plumbing fixtures until the late 20th century. Even though lead was durable and malleable, and not as susceptible to corrosion, people eventually realized it wasn’t the healthiest to consume, and thus Indiana American Water got to work making sure the water was safer and healthier for everyone throughout the state.
Eliminating this threat includes replacing lead service lines throughout the Region and state. Just around three years ago, Indiana American Water estimated there were 55,000 lead service lines still in use, two-thirds of which were located in the Northwest Indiana area.
“We routinely sample for lead and our systems continue to be in compliance with state and federal regulations. Where needed, as in Northwest Indiana, we provide appropriate corrosion control treatment with many of our facilities using corrosion inhibitors to mitigate any potential threat,” Loughmiller said.
With the Lead Service Line Replacement Program in place, however, Indiana American Water is quickly working to greatly lower that number. The company has already replaced or retired a third, or about 12,000, lead service lines.
For more information on Indiana American Water, visit https://www.amwater.com/inaw/
