Well, Mr. Roddenberry was wrong about Chicago’s water supply; it’s next door in Lake Michigan, all billions and billions (maybe more) gallons of it. The rest of his comments are probably correct though. If he means the computer systems that control the water, well that’s the same for everyone, as well as the utility systems, transport systems, etc. We’re all screwed, at least for a while.
Lake Michigan remains the main source of water in the metropolitan area. In 1900, the Sanitary District of Chicago completed the 28-mile Sanitary and Ship canal to reverse the flow of the Chicago River away from Lake Michigan, thereby improving the quality of lake water. Canada as well as neighboring states opposed the diversion of Lake Michigan water, and Supreme Court decisions limited the amount of Lake Michigan water that could be diverted into the Sanitary and Ship Canal (1930) and the water supply for Illinois communities (1967). As a result, the amount of water which any community in the state may draw from Lake Michigan is regulated by the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Division of Water Resources. Because of these legal limitations on Illinois’ use of Lake Michigan water, new allocations come at the expense of existing users and contribute to the continuing highly charged debate about water in the Chicago area.