Chicago MWRD settles lawsuit to permanently cap sewer of serial industrial violator

Chicago MWRD settles lawsuit to permanently cap sewer of serial industrial violatorThe Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago has approved a legal settlement to keep an industrial plating facility's sewer connection permanently plugged following a decade-long history of discharge violations.

The settlement mandates an injunction keeping Electronic Plating Company's sewer plugged until the property changes ownership.

MWRD is seeking the maximum statutory penalty of $10,000 per day for six discharge exceedances recorded between March and May 2025.

The company had previously received 26 cease and desist orders between 2019 and 2022.

In separate business, the board awarded a $10 million contract for tunnel rehabilitation at the Kirie Water Reclamation Plant and noted a new state bill proposing mandatory PFAS testing.

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Board of Commissioners has approved a lawsuit settlement that effectively shuts down a local industrial facility following years of wastewater discharge violations. Approved during the board's February 19, 2026 meeting, the settlement with Electronic Plating Company (Case No. 2025L006657) seeks an injunction to keep the facility's sewer plugged and imposes civil penalties for repeated violations of the district's Sewage and Waste Control Ordinance. Commissioner Cameron Davis outlined the company's extensive history of non-compliance, which dates back to 2012. The facility received 26 cease and desist orders between 2019 and 2022. Following a show-cause proceeding, a board order was issued in April 2023, which the company subsequently violated through June 2024. Chris Murray, a staff member in the MWRD Law Department, noted that even after the company capped its process line, the district recorded six exceedances of pollutant concentration limits between March and May 2025. MWRD is seeking the statutory maximum penalty of $10,000 per day for each of those six violations. Following a notice from the executive director to appear at a hearing to plug their sewer, the company voluntarily hired a licensed plumber to plug the connection on June 6, 2025. The district has not received any flow from the facility since that date. "Part of the settlement would require an injunction being placed that would keep the sewer plugged, and it wouldn't be unplugged until there's a new owner of the property," Murray said, adding that the company has ceased business activities and is attempting to sell the property. Commissioner Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda noted that the settlement effectively serves to "shut down the company that has been for years making these violations." In other substantive business, the board approved a $10.02 million contract award to John Burns Construction Company for the rehabilitation of service tunnel expansion joints at the Kirie Water Reclamation Plant. The contractor has a demonstrated track record of executing critical infrastructure upgrades at major MWRD facilities, including previous hydraulic gate modifications at the Stickney Water Reclamation Plant, with a specialization in minimizing disruptions during live plant operations. The board also authorized a $1.19 million to $1.44 million contract advertisement for underground storage tank improvements across various MWRD locations to conform with forthcoming state regulations. Additionally, Commissioner Davis alerted the board to the recent introduction of state bill SB 3681, which would require MWRD to conduct testing for PFAS and plastics.