News Releases - 2000

Nicor Mercury Disposal Investigation: Update 3

Springfield, Ill. -- Illinois Environmental Protection Agency teams today returned to scrapyards in DeKalb and Ottawa and found some mercury type gas meter regulators still containing mercury.

Nine of the regulators were opened at DeKalb Iron and Metal, 900 Oak, and five had visible mercury in them and air vapor readings for the other four also indicated some mercury content.

One mercury type regulator was found at Newtson Iron, 901 W. Marquette Street, Ottawa, and when opened, mercury was visible.

Previously, regulators still containing mercury were opened at Chicago Heights Steel and Iron and Berlinsky Iron in Joliet.

Sending regulators still containing mercury to scrapyards violates federal and state hazardous waste handling laws and regulations.

One of Illinois EPA’s contractors, Clean Harbors Inc., will properly store the opened regulators as potential evidence.

Also today, teams made up of Illinois EPA and U.S. EPA staff inspected the remaining 14 Nicor service centers identified as potentially having received regulators.

A scrap metal box in a fenced area about one block west of the Dixon service center at 421 W. First Street, showed a .758 milograms per cubic meter air vapor reading inside the box. That is the highest reading recorded at a service center. The site will be revisited on Monday for further investigation of the contents of the box.

Two mercury-type regulators were also identified in an outside dumpster at the Glen Ellyn service center. When they were opened, mercury was visible in one of them and the air meter reading indicated some mercury also present in the other one.

No regulators or mercury contamination from them was detected at the other 12 service centers inspected today.

The service center at Prospect Heights was revisited and no mercury type regulators were found. Two other service centers, Ingleside and Shorewood, will be reinspected on Monday because of the prior mercury air readings.

A total of 31 service centers and 17 scrapyards have now been inspected for potential mercury contamination from regulators.