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Illinois EPA to Clean Up Tarkowski Property
SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois Environmental Protection Agency contractor today is beginning cleanup of a dump site that has plagued the Lake Barrington – Wauconda area for decades. The cleanup is expected to take four to six weeks, weather permitting. The Agency is working with the Village of Lake Barrington through an intergovernmental agreement to complete cleanup of the 16-acre John Tarkowski property located in unincorporated Lake County. Tarkowski had been illegally receiving waste material on his property since the late 1960s, according to public records. “The Agency is pleased that we can finish cleanup of this environmental and safety hazard thanks to the efforts of the Village and their representatives in the General Assembly. The neighbors and the community have endured this mess too long,” said Illinois EPA Interim Director John Kim. This last phase of the cleanup is being funded through a $430,000 state grant supported by Sen.
Governor Quinn Announces Web Portal forEnvironmental Permitting Process – Illinois EPA Permitting Process is Now Faster and More Transparent
SPRINGFIELD – January 13, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn announced a new Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) online portal that will make the environmental permitting process more user-friendly by eliminating red tape for businesses in Illinois.
Illinois EPA Releases Air Quality Report for 2010
Air quality data monitored during 2010 were similar to 2009 data. Air quality was either good or moderate more than 91 percent of the time throughout Illinois, compared to 96 percent in 2009. There were 32 days in 2010 when air quality in some part of Illinois was considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups;” this compares to 13 days in 2009 that were “unhealthy for sensitive groups.” The Illinois EPA maintains a network of 80 air quality monitoring sites with more than 200 instruments throughout the state.
Illinois EPA Awards Brownfields Municipal Redevelopment Grant to Village of Schaumburg
SPRINGFIELD, ILL —Illinois EPA Interim Director John J. Kim announced the Village of Schaumburg has been awarded a $43,278 Municipal Brownfields Redevelopment Grant to conduct environmental assessment activities at the former Murzyn-Anderson facility located at 1001 West Irving Park Road, Schaumburg.
Chicago Fed Hosts Business Development Forum
CHICAGO- Representatives of roughly 50 minority- and women-owned businesses gathered November 30 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (FRBC) to discuss the current economic landscape and how to grow their companies in the coming year. The half-day conference was titled “New Strategies for a New Economy,” and more than 85 business professionals attended.
Electronics Disposal Ban Takes Effect in New Year
SPRINGFIELD –Beginning January 1, it will no longer be legal for individuals to dispose of unwanted electronics in their regular trash. Discarded electronics, including computers, monitors, electronic keyboards, scanners, fax machines and many other electronic devices, must now be taken to a registered recycler for proper management. It will be illegal for the consumer to dispose of them in the trash and it will be illegal for Illinois landfills to accept them. The Illinois Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act, which took effect in 2008, required manufacturers to establish a recycling program for discarded and unwanted electric products, if they sell their products in Illinois. This newest phase will include individual citizens in the effort to keep electronics, which contain a variety of potentially toxic contaminants, out of the state’s 48 active landfills.
Governor Quinn Announces Key Cabinet Appointments – Ann Schneider Continues Leadership at IDOT; John Holton Appointed Aging Director
CHICAGO – October 24, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today announced two top appointments to his executive cabinet.
Illinois EPA refers Iowa Interstate Railroad to Attorney General for enforcement – Agency seeks cleanup of environmental damage resulting from ethanol releases following train derailment near Tiskilwa on October 7
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Interim Director Lisa Bonnett has asked the Illinois Attorney General’s Office to proceed with an enforcement action and seek immediate injunctive relief against Iowa Interstate Railroad, requiring it to conduct a detailed environmental assessment and remediation of the impact on the environment from a derailment on October 7 near Tiskilwa that resulted in several railroad cars containing ethanol and corn mash catching on fire. The incident resulted in the temporary evacuation of the entire population of the village of Tiskilwa in Bureau County after the early morning derailment.
Illinois EPA Awards Solid Waste Enforcement Grants
SPRINGFIELD –Illinois EPA interim director Lisa Bonnett has announced 19 grant awards to local governments across the state to be used to conduct inspections at permitted pollution control facilities, such as landfills, and to investigate citizen complaints about illegal dumping. To be eligible to receive a solid waste enforcement grant, local governments must first enter into delegation agreements with the Illinois EPA, in which they agree to hire and train landfill inspectors under the state’s certification requirements.
Illinois EPA Releases Landfill Capacity Report
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has released its 24 th annual Nonhazardous Solid Waste Management and Landfill Capacity report for 2010, which provides landfill data compiled for activity during previous calendar year. The report shows that 45 Illinois landfills reported capacity data to the Illinois EPA for calendar year 2010, with the 43 active landfills accepting more than 46.1 million gate cubic yards of municipal waste for disposal.
