Most of you know me as "waterguy" on a couple other local sites over the years. Followed Ken's link here from WCF awhile back, but really just started digging in and doing some reading within the last couple weeks. Thanks Ken for a great site and for putting in the time to put out the level of info you put out there!

Those of you who know me know I do the majority of my fishing on the Fox. I also work at a water treatment plant (In Elgin) that treats water from the river, so I am around the river almost on a daily basis. We keep a close eye on river conditions at the plant..recording USGS data as well as data from our own gauge that we maintain here. we also get a daily temp reading (along with alot of other analysis i wont bore youi guys with) So if you guys ever have any questions in regard to river conditions feel free to ask See you guys around..

...The other Erik

Good to see you here Erik! It's nice to have another Fox river rat in the neighborhood.

Welcome.

Hey Erik. Welcome aboard.

The assumption is that you also fish the outflow all the time. Unless it's an intake like in Aurora.

The one thing I've let slide in all my record keeping over the years is taking water temps every time I get out. Used to do it religiously. Now I just stick my hand in the water . . . feels cold, warm, hot. I do watch the USGS gauges though, primarily the one in Montgomery. That's the one I'm used to.

You can't have too much info. Not sure what to do with it all, but you just never know when it will come in hand.

The guys at the Montgomery plant tell me the discharge there is clean enough to drink. I dared them. They laughed.

It's an intake for a drinking water facility, Ken. Just like Aurora like you mentioned. Elgin and Aurora are the only two communities drawing water from the Fox. I do fish it and it's just OK. Was dredged years ago and has been filling in with sediment ever since, so it's very silted over. Panfish, catfish, carp, and if you get lucky and catch the occasional bass more often than not it's a largemouth. I have caught just about everything that swims there at one time or another though.

As far as drinking treated wastewater..I watched a teleconference once at work and one of the topics discussed was the re-use of wastewater effluent. The bigwigs putting on the conference were all drinking big glasses of treated waste water...no joke! I would not be suprised if in the future areas that have limited water sources start "recycling" their wastewater. the problem is public perception.

What up Erik. I lurk here too.
-Conrad AKA Eye for an Eye

Con-Solo wrote:What up Erik. I lurk here too.
-Conrad AKA Eye for an Eye

Hey!

Lets get those yaks on the river next year for sure!

It's a bit belated...but...Welcome!!

Cleaned up...sure

its discharged to meet effluent standards.

Acceptable for fish & wildlife, but I'd wait to get home to chug some..

Like he knows..Not clean as in drinking water standards..

Blaachhh...

*
They might have been drinking effluent water.
After it was boiled & filtered......

Yes, I'm sure They didn't drink it straight out of the pipe! It had to have been put through some other form of treatment... if only for the smell. I think I would have a hard time with it regardless!