A-J Water Commission hosts open house Saturday

The Anna-Jonesboro Water Commission hosted an open house Saturday afternoon, May 19, at its water treatment facility.

The facility is located at 495 Water Plant Rd., which is west of Jonesboro, off of Illinois Route 146.

The commission has recently finished a major renovation of the facility. The work, which cost over $4.1 million, started in 2016.

Visitors who came to the open house had an opportunity to see the renovated facility and to learn more about what it takes to provide drinking water.

The facility treats water which is provided to the cities of Anna and Jonesboro, the Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in Anna, the Lick Creek Water District and the Shawnee Valley Water District. Anna-Jonesboro Water Commissioner superintendent Casey Johnson said that the plant provides water to nearly 10,000 people in Union County.

The treatment facility has seven employees and is in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week.The water commission has five wells.

The treatment facility generates:

•About 1 million to 1..3 million gallons of water a day.

•About 27 million to 30 million gallons a month.

•Over 300 million gallons a year.