The Will County Circuit Court is stepping into the debate over radioactive tritium in local waterways. Three Illinois nuclear plants operated by Exelon leaked the chemical tritium over the past decade.

In Will County, its Braidwood station leaked tritium into a ditch, groundwater, and a local drinking well. A judge Wednesday ordered Exelon to upgrade and redesign aging pipes at the plant.

Will County States Attorney James Glasgow says the federal government should have required that long ago.

“I just find that ridiculous. This isn’t Exelon’s fault or anyone else’s at this point. It’s just a lack of teeth in the federal laws and federal regulations,” he said.

Under the order, Exelon must provide bottled water to residents who have tritium-laced wells. The company must also complete sampling of nearly three hundred wells in the town of Godley.

Exelon says it’s already working on several of the judge’s mandates.