Press Release - Monday, August 04, 2008
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Illinois EPA initiates cleanup of illegal dump in Macoupin County
WILSONVILLE - Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) Director Doug Scott today announced that the Agency began cleanup of a large illegal dump site located at 306 Rice Street Wilsonville, IL. Weather permitting, the cleanup will finish Thursday, August 4.
Over the next few days, crews will work hard to remove nearly 50 cubic yards of waste from the community, including dimensional lumber, general household trash, glass, plastics, mixed metals, used tires, and demolition debris, which have been disposed of illegally.
While all illegally dumped waste presents a problem, improperly disposed tires provide a breeding habitat for the type of mosquito that is the primary carrier of the West Nile Virus. The cleanup is being conducted as part of the I-RID (Illinois Removes Illegal Dumps) Program, which continues to remove environmental hazards and protect our Illinois' beautiful landscape.
"The goal of these cleanups is two-fold. It not only will remove an illegally dumped waste from the natural environment, which festered over the years, but the cleanups also preserve the environment in rural and city communities, making the outdoors places to be enjoyed for generations to come," said Director Scott. "I am grateful we can continue to beautify communities throughout the state."
Since the fall of 2006, approximately150 of these often long-festering open dumps all over the state have been properly cleaned up by the Illinois EPA. Almost 300 tons of tires and more than 500 tons of metal have been recycled from the cleanups and nearly 25,000 tons of other debris has been taken to regulated landfills for proper disposal. Items fly-dumped have included a car chassis, refrigerators, couches and even fiberglass boats.
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.
Working with local and county officials to identify candidates for I-RID cleanups, Illinois EPA has cleaned up sites ranging from the tip of Southern Illinois near Cave-in-Rock to rural central and eastern Illinois and urban locations in the East St. Louis and Chicago metro areas.
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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