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Significant Developments and Activities Report

LAND AND CHEMICALS DIVISION
Weekly Significant Developments and Activities Report
May 30, 2008

Chicago City Council Cell Phone Recycling Resolution

EPA Region 5 has been requested by Chicago Alderman Edward Burke’s office to be a witness at the June 6, 2008 session of Chicago City Council’s Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development to discuss the issue of cellular telephone recycling. We have been asked to present information on this topic for 5-10 minutes, provide some written materials and be available for questions from the Committee.

Alderman Burke is offering a Cell Phone Recycling Resolution during this session, which will be heard on June 6, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. in Room 201A, City Hall, before the Chicago City Council's Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development. This is the initial first step for the resolution to go to the full City Council.

The City believes that there is great potential for cell phone recycling beyond what is being currently done. They would like a representative from Region 5 to discuss EPA programs on electronics recycling, how recycling cell phones can benefit the environment, and encourage their recycling. Other witnesses have been invited from the cellular phone industry and organizations that are involved in cell phone reuse and recycling. The City of Chicago is a partner in EPA’s Plug-in to eCycling, and thus has agreed to help support electronics recycling as part of their program.

Topics to be covered include:

Contact: Christopher Newman, 312-353-8402

Environmental Justice Grant Solicitation

The 2008 Environmental Justice Small Grant (EJSG) Request for Applications (RFA) was published on April 8, 2008. The deadline for applications is June 30, 2008. Eligible applicants include:

  1. a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization as designated by the IRS;
  2. a non-profit organization, recognized by the State, territory, commonwealth, or Tribe in which it is located;
  3. a city, township, county government and
  4. Native American Tribal governments.

For the EJSGs, all awards will be for the amount of $20,000 and will have a project period of one year. You may view the announcement at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/environmentaljustice/grants/ej-smgrants.html. RFAs will be sent via email and standard mail to approximately 500 community-based organizations here in Region 5. Also, there are three national outreach calls scheduled for April 16, 2008, May 14, 2008, and June 18, 2008.
Contact: Margaret Millard, 312-353-1440

EPA to Seek Immediate Cleanup of Dioxin Contamination in Riverside Residential Area

On May 27, 2008, staff from EPA Region 5, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and the Michigan Department of Community Health met with residents of the Riverside Boulevard neighborhood in Saginaw to discuss results of recent sampling of dioxin-contaminated soil in the area.

Soil from residential properties in an area along the Lower Tittabawassee River was recently sampled and analyzed by EPA and evaluated in collaboration with MDEQ and health officials. While final data is still coming in, preliminary results show properties with unacceptably high levels of dioxin contamination.

EPA has notified Dow Chemical Co. of the situation and will meet with the company and MDEQ to discuss potential response actions. EPA and MDEQ will seek immediate cleanup of the Riverside residential area.
Contact: Greg Rudloff, 312-886-0455

Site Visit to Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC), Shakopee, MN

Materials Management Branch staff met with Mike Whitt of the SMSC Land Department and conducted an assessment of their composting site on May 19, 2008. SMSC began their composting operation approximately a year and a half ago and will soon be expanding to include food waste from their casinos. The site will need to be relocated in order to accommodate the large quantity of food waste it will be receiving. This relocation also will provide better site access. Since the operation started, from their large casino facility alone, 2,565.52 tons of organics (not including food waste) have been diverted from landfills.
Contacts: Burdell Chapman 312-353-9564; Rebecca Geyer 312-353-8314

LCD Participates in Great Lakes Earth Day Challenge 2008

For Earth Day 2008, the Land and Chemicals Division (LCD) supported the Great Lakes National Program Office’s Earth Day 2008 Challenge by contributing staff support and expertise to reach the Challenge’s goal of having one million pounds of electronic waste and one million pills collected by Challenge partners across the Great Lakes Basin. The objective of the Challenge was to increase people’s awareness of the Great Lakes, from the Great Lakes Basin areas of Region 5, as well as Pennsylvania and New York. To achieve this, the Challenge promoted recycling as a way to protect the Great Lakes and was something that would be relatively easy for all citizens to participate. LCD staff put in many hours organizing the Challenge, identifying and calling potential partners to promote the Challenge, and contributing to the Challenge’s Internet weblog. In addition, LCD staff fielded many questions, reviewed grant proposals and staffed the press conference and information booth on Earth Day in Daley Plaza. There were over 175 organizations participating in the Challenge from state, local government and not-for-profit organizations. The Challenge’s goals were significantly exceeded with 33 electronic waste recycling events collecting 4,951,259 pounds, and 23 pharmaceutical events collecting 4,379,100 pills.
Contact: Christopher Newman, 312-353-8402

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