CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) – Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a consent order this week with Peoples Gas over a natural gas leak into the Mahomet Aquifer that reached nearby residents’ private wells.
It resolves a lawsuit into a 2016 leak from an underground storage facility. Residents complained of foul tasting water. One homeowner even recorded a video showing water coming out of a tap and being lit on fire with a lighter.
The settlement requires Peoples Gas to pay $575,000 in civil penalties and additional payments. The IEPA will get $150,000 of the money; IDNR gets $225,000; $175,000 will be directed to the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois; $25,000 goes to IDPH.
The company provided WAND News with the following statement in an email:
We are pleased to reach this agreement with the Illinois Attorney General, the Illinois EPA, the Illinois DNR and the Illinois Department of Public Health.
This agreement specifically reiterates important information we have shared for years, including the fact that methane is a well-documented, naturally occurring non-toxic substance that has been present in private water wells throughout Champaign County for many years and that there are no known health effects associated with the ingestion of methane in drinking water.
Since one of our employees first identified this issue in 2016 we have proactively and transparently worked to resolve any issues. The agreement recognizes our cooperation throughout and the voluntary actions we have taken to address the underlying cause of the leak and concerns raised by members of the community.
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