Comment on drinking-water plan by Nov. 21

The public will have until Nov. 21 to comment on a plan to pump and treat groundwater to provide drinking water for south county residents.

Kennecott Utah Copper Corp., in partnership with the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District, is proposing to extract and treat contaminated groundwater through a reverse-osmosis membrane that removes the minerals, mostly salts and selenium. The treated groundwater would then be used as drinking water for the cities of West Jordan, South Jordan, Riverton and Herriman.

The Department of Environmental Quality had extended the public comment period to Nov. 1 but has extended it again by 20 days.

"I realize the proposal is a complex issue," said Dianne Nielson, executive director of DEQ and the state of Utah's trustee for the cleanup project. "This extension will allow more time for individuals to review the information and provide meaningful comments."

The cleanup project is a result of a 1995 legal settlement filed by DEQ against Kennecott. Kennecott agreed to pay $9 million into a trust fund and set up a $28 million line of credit. The funds are now worth about $61.3 million.

Documents explaining the project are available on the Internet at www.deq.utah.gov.