News Releases from Region 05
EPA proposes to Delete DuPage County Landfill/Blackwell Forest Preserve from Superfund list
For Immediate Release No. 20-OPA-060
WARRENVILLE, Ill. (July 9, 2020) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public comment on its proposal to delete the DuPage County Landfill/Blackwell Forest Preserve Superfund Site in Warrenville from the National Priorities List (NPL). EPA has determined that the required cleanup is complete and no further remediation is necessary to protect human health and the environment. The agency will take public comments on the proposed deletion until Aug. 7, 2020.
“This administration continues to make good on its commitment to pick up the pace of Superfund cleanups,” said EPA Regional Administrator Kurt Thiede. “Now that this cleanup is done, visitors can better enjoy nature and recreation at the Blackwell Forest Preserve.”
The 40-acre DuPage County Landfill/Blackwell Forest Preserve Superfund Site is located within the 1,200-acre Blackwell Forest Preserve. The landfill accepted waste between 1965 and 1973. Known as Mt. Hoy, the waste and soil mountain rises 150 feet above the original ground surface. EPA placed the site on the National Priorities List in 1990.
EPA repaired the landfill cap, installed an extraction system, treated and disposed of the landfill leachate, and installed additional landfill gas vents. EPA continues to monitor the natural breakdown of groundwater contamination. Close cooperation between EPA, Illinois EPA, and the site’s potentially responsible party enabled the Forest Preserve to address potential risks while maintaining public access to recreation and conservation activities.
The NPL tracks the nation’s most contaminated sites that threaten human health or the environment. Sites on the list are eligible for cleanup under the Superfund program. EPA removes sites or parts of sites from the list once all the remedies are successfully implemented and no further cleanup, other than operation and maintenance, monitoring and five-year reviews, is required.
Today’s proposed deletion is a result of EPA’s continued focus to finish the job at Superfund sites. Under President Trump’s leadership, EPA has increased the number of sites and properties deleted from the NPL.
For example, EPA deleted all or part of 27 sites from the NPL in FY 2019, the largest number of deletions in one year since 2001. While the site work on Superfund sites spans administrations, the Trump Administration is prioritizing both cleanup progress and cleanup completion. Deletions from the NPL are important because it announces to communities and signals to potential developers and financial institutions that cleanup in the deleted area is complete.
The public may submit comments until Aug. 7, 2020 via:
Online: https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=EPA-HQ-SFUND-1990-0010-0082
For more information: https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0500606
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