Environmental Progress - Summer/Fall 2002

Environmental Progress : Summer/Fall 2002

First Illinois Municipality Has Environmental Management System

Progressive step toward improved environment, human health

The Cook County community of Lemont is joining such diverse other U.S. communities as New York City and Indianapolis, Ind. in implementing a municipal Environmental Management System (EMS).

The first municipality in Illinois to do so, Lemont joins a vanguard of U.S. municipalities voluntarily taking a progressive step toward improving the way municipal operations affect human health and the environment.

"This action will help Lemont realize the vision it set forth in an environmental policy adopted in July 2000," said the Rev. Glenn Bergmark, director of Lemont's Environmental Commission.

One of 13 pilot partners

Lemont was one of 13 pilot partners in Illinois who stepped forward to develop an EMS for their organizations. Each of the pilot partners worked with the IEPA to develop its own EMS. Some have since obtained ISO 14000 certification which can help companies that do business globally.

Drew Irvin, assistant village administrator, handled much of the coordination needed to implement this EMS. "Environmental issues have taken a considerable amount of staff time recently," he said. "Such seemingly simple tasks as acquiring information about permit applications, legally allowable discharges, and public comment periods are not easy. When incomplete, conflicting, and perhaps incorrect information starts circulating through the community about environmental issues, more of our time has to be spent responding to questions from residents and the news media, as well as internally from elected officials and village staff. By design, our EMS will provide the village with timely environmental information that will be useful in decision-making and planning efforts," Irvin added.

For municipalities struggling with difficult budgetary and resource decisions, an EMS provides additional benefits.

Lemont's EMS will cover more issues than systems designed for some municipalities. Johnson, Depp & Quisenberry, an environmental and engineering consultant firm, designed and helped implement Lemont's EMS. It will address air quality, drinking water, permits, regulatory and environmental program changes, emerging environmental issues and grants and loans.

EMS helped shape water security plan

Lemont may also be one of the first municipalities in the nation to implement anti-terrorism measures to protect its public water supply. Shortly after the terrorist attack of Sept. 11, 2001, Lemont began taking steps to protect its drinking water treatment plant. Through the EMS, Johnson, Depp & Quisenberry suggested additional security measures. "Each measure suggested has little or no cost to implement. For this reason alone, they make sense. Being in the Chicago metropolitan area is another reason we should carefully consider protective measures," Irvin said.

Lemont's EMS is not expected to realize the same degree of cost savings that other municipal EMSs are realizing, but "it is the right thing to do," according to village officials. "We want Lemont to be an environmentally safe place to live and work."