Press Release - Thursday, September 14, 2006
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Illinois EPA to clean up trash from southeast Chicago
SPRINGFIELD—Illinois EPA Director Doug Scott announced that the Agency will begin cleanup of waste in the Calumet area of southeast Chicago. The cleanup is being conducted as part of the recently enacted I-RID Program, or Illinois Removes Illegal Dumps. The Illinois EPA is working with City of Chicago officials to identify the waste and properly manage its disposal.
Among the wastes expected to be removed are metal car parts, discarded boats, and various other metals, tires, batteries, plastic, household trash and other waste materials. In addition, significant amounts of general construction and demolition debris have been illegally disposed and must be removed.
The I-RID Program became law in 2005 to give the Illinois EPA additional authority to combat open dumping. These dumps often become a magnet to fly dumpers, and frequently become health and safety hazards. The program uses part of existing landfill fee revenues to cover costs of additional IEPA inspection staff and cleanups.
The Chicago Streets and Sanitation Department will pay for disposal fees at a nearby solid waste transfer station, which the Illinois EPA would typically cover. This will allow the state's dollars to go farther and allow the Agency to do more cleanups.
The City wants to clean up the area in preparation for the construction of the Ford Calumet Environmental Center, an ecological education center and wildlife habitat.
Illegal open dumping continues to be a chronic problem in Illinois and elsewhere and has a detrimental effect on the health and well-being of a community," said Director Scott. "I am grateful to Governor Blagojevich and the General Assembly for providing additional funding and authority to Illinois EPA to clean up more of these messes while we continue our enforcement efforts against those who cause them."
Illinois legislators approved Governor Blagojevich's I-RID initiative to give the IEPA additional authority to make sure solid waste disposal facilities are properly operated and provide the Agency additional resources to combat open dumping. Another component of I-RID is additional inspection authority to make sure solid waste disposal facilities are properly operated
With the funding, the Illinois EPA can hire contractors to clean up open dumps where responsible parties cannot be located or where various specific imminent threats, such as fire, are present. The new law also provides for permitting and regulation of the disposal of clean construction or demolition debris, such as in former quarries, and gives the Illinois EPA Director additional authority to seal sites where there is a potential risk for harm to human health or the environment.
The cleanup in southeast Chicago is expected to take about two weeks to complete. The Illinois EPA will periodically inspect the site to ensure that the problem does not recur, and has the authority to issue administrative citations to violators of this and other provisions of the Environmental Protection Act.
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