The Village of Park Forest has been awarded the "Best Tasting Water in the South Suburbs" by the South Suburban Water Works Association, marking the eighth time it has received this honor in the last 15 years.
Park Forest's water was evaluated against that of the Village of Romeoville and Aqua Illinois, which serves 14 counties in the state, including the city of Kankakee and the villages of Bradley and Bourbonnais.
Chief Water Plant Operator Wendy Schafer said a panel judged the water and went through various taste tests.
"The taste test chair selects three judges," Schafer explained. "The judges are Michelle Nelson, the mayor of Flossmoor; Sandy Nelson, the business manager of Flossmoor Station; and Shauna Richerson from the Illinois AWWA. None of the judges are affiliated with any of the competition participants to ensure fairness. Each judge receives glasses of water from all the participants and evaluates the samples based on taste, clarity, and odor. The entry with the highest score wins."
Schafer said the Village's water won by a unanimous vote. Now that Park Forest has won on the local level, the Village's water will face off in a statewide competition during WATERCON 2025 on April 14 in Peoria. The conference brings together utilities and industry suppliers, consultants, manufacturers, and regulators to share information through exhibits, education, and networking events.
"I'm excited because the Village's water will be showcased on the state level," Schafer said. "I hope residents can drink their water with pride knowing it is some of the best drinking water in not only the south suburbs but the state."
Schafer appreciated the recognition, highlighting the significant effort in ensuring Park Forest has high-quality water. The Water Plant is staffed by seven employees who hold drinking water licenses through the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) and operates 24/7. Water is continuously produced by the operators, who perform routine tests every four hours to check various parameters, including pH, chlorine, phosphate, fluoride, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium hardness, turbidity, and the Langelier Saturation Index, to ensure water quality.
Schafer noted that this rigorous testing helps maintain the Village's compliance with IEPA and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations and standards, contributing to safe and quality drinking water production.