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Newsletter: You can now subscribe
to our quarterly email newsletter, the Citizens'
Bulletin. |
Comments requested on proposed AmerenUE-Venice Ash closure plan
AmerenUE has proposed a closure
plan for its former ash ponds located at the Venice
Generating Station. The Venice Station is located on the boundary between Madison and
St. Clair Counties along the bank of the Mississippi River. Due to levels of some
chemicals in groundwater that exceed Illinois’ groundwater quality standards, Ameren
plans to implement a groundwater management zone (GMZ) at the Venice Station.
Rain Barrel Giveaway – Conservation World 2010
Illinois State Fair
Sharon Krueger of Elkhart (right, with her son Austin on the left) was
the winner of the Illinois EPA rain barrel at the 2010 Illinois State Fair.
Ash Impoundment Strategy Progress Report: In response to
the massive coal ash spill at a Tennessee Valley Authority facility two
years ago, Illinois EPA developed an aggressive strategy to assess ash
impoundments at the state's 24 coal-fired power plants. The results of
the assessment and a strategic plan are now available.
Markham Illegal Dump Site Investigation
A new (July 2010) updated fact
sheet is now available.
The Illinois EPA is in the process of cleaning an approximately
12-acre illegal dump site on the south side of Markham, Cook County;
the dumping appears to have taken place over several decades. The dump
site, which is one of the largest in the state’s history, contained
discarded boat hulls, mobile homes, construction and demolition debris, drums
and totes with unknown liquids, swimming pool chemicals, unidentified gas
cylinders and various other wastes.
As of June 21st, the Agency has removed over 4,300 tons
of various debris, plus 98 truckloads of tires, which equates to 26,000
passenger tires. A fact
sheet with additional
detail is available as well as photos
of the site both before and during cleanup efforts.
The 19th annual summer Governor's
Environmental Corps internship program, funded entirely by private
donations, began on June 1. This year's participants in the group photo
are (first row, left to right): Simone Blake, Katie Johnston, Kim
Israel, Megan Wilson, Derek Clark, Andrew Ralph (second row, left to
right): Natalie Fleming, Casey George, Kelly Van Gennip, Andrew McLean,
Alex Hagg (third row, left to right): Eric Wilke, Bethany Steevens,
Scott Pettenon, Vernon Johnson, John Curry (fourth row, left to right):
Ifad Noor, Ian Lake, Cheyenne Morgan, Dabby Liu, Henry Schmitz (fifth
row, left to right): Amber Mead, Ben Newton, Travis Dunn, Jeff
Schappaugh.
Green Infrastructure Planning for Illinois Draft Report Ready for Review
The Illinois EPA is soliciting comments on the draft
final report pursuant
to the Green Infrastructure for Clean Water Act (P.A. 96-26), prior to its
June 30, 2010, submission to the Illinois General Assembly.
Please submit written comments no later than June 15, 2010, to:
Amy Walkenbach
Illinois EPA
Bureau of Water
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL 62794-9276
The
2010 Illinois EPA Pollution Prevention interns paused for a
group photo during a training session in Springfield. Pictured are: (front row, left to right)
Justin Harrell (presenter from SIU-C), Scott Bluemlein, Joe Bisognani, Aicha Thiam, Scott Morgan,
and Anthony Finigan, (back row, left to right): IEPA Director Doug Scott, Justin Pappachan,
Michael Graham, Jeff Tyska, Alex Dunker, Rashad Nuruddin, Daniel Lindsey, Rolando Esquivel,
Richard Reese (IEPA pollution prevention staffer), Brian Rodely (IEPA Marion regional office staffer),
and IEPA Associate Director Elmo Dowd.
Brady Holst of Southeastern High in Augusta was the Senior Outstanding Achievement
winner for the annual
award from Illinois EPA at the State Science Exposition.
A demonstration on groundwater by Ed Wagner of the Illinois EPA's Bureau of Water gets a lively reaction
from 4th grade students attending the
annual Earth Stewardship Day program
at the Illinois State Fairgrounds on May 4, 2010.
The federal Clean Water
Act Section 319 non-point source pollution grant information has been extensively updated,
including the request for proposals, organization certification and grant
regulations and the application packet and instructions. The deadline for
submitting applications for the next annual round of grants is July 30.
The 2010 Governor’s Green Youth Awards were presented on April 22.
Fifth
and Sixth Grade students from throughout Illinois were
honored
on April 10 at an awards ceremony and reception in Springfield for the 23rd annual Illinois EPA
Poster, Poetry and Prose Contest.
Safe Water Well Initiative
A new
fact sheet on the importance of private well owners doing regular
testing for potential contaminants, including volatile organic compound
chemicals, and other useful information, such as a list of certified
laboratories and Illinois Department of Public Health and county health
department assistance is now available. Additional information is available
on the well
water page. |
