Illinois EPA Working with East St. Louis Housing Authority to Clean up Contamination

SPRINGFIELD—Illinois EPA and the Housing Authority of East St. Louis have entered into a Cooperative Agreement to conduct cleanup activities at the former Orr Weathers Gas Station in East St. Louis. 

 

The Illinois EPA is utilizing nearly $197,000 in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, or Stimulus, for remediation of contamination associated with federally regulated leaking underground storage tanks. The Housing Authority received $200,000 from U.S. EPA through Brownfield Petroleum Cleanup Grant designed to assist municipalities in the performance of corrective action activities at Brownfields sites. The Cooperative Agreement allows the agencies to combine the grant funds in order to complete the cleanup.

 

"By working together and applying funds made independently available by the U.S. EPA, the site will be completely cleaned up and made available for reuse" said Illinois EPA Director Doug Scott.

 

The former gas station, a .58 acre site located at 1434 Missouri Avenue, contained leaking underground storage tanks, lead contaminated soils, hydraulic lifts and soils contaminated with petroleum and non-petroleum contaminants. These contaminants were identified earlier this year in an Illinois EPA site investigation of the former gas station site. A remediation plan was then developed, which is scheduled to be implemented this winter.

 

By combining these funds, the Illinois EPA and the Housing Authority will have a site that can benefit the citizens through job creation, improved redevelopment opportunities and protection of the health and well-being of the residents," said Illinois EPA Director Doug Scott.

 

Once the cleanup is completed, the site will be utilized as green space and will no longer pose a risk to the neighborhood.

 

The East St. Louis Housing Authority has created a public document repository located at the Housing Authority office at 700 North 20^th Street. The repository includes the Illinois EPA site investigation reports and a draft of the Remedial Action Plan. 

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