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Meeting Nov. 20, 2002

Maple Park and Victory Heights Advisory Council for the Dutch Boy Site & Former West Pullman Works Site
The meeting was held on November 20, 2002 at 7:00PM at the Edward White Elementary School.

  1. Welcome and Introductions
  2. Review of minutes from previous meeting
  3. Dutch Boy Update
  4. Former West Pullman Works Update
  5. City of Chicago Update
  6. Next meeting date
    Contact information

Attendees:

I. Welcome and Introductions

The meeting was opened by Janet Pope of the US EPA, who explained the presence of the court reporter, and asked everyone to provide his or her name and affiliation. When the introductions were complete, the meeting was turned over to Mr. Mark Britton of Illinois EPA.

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II. Review of minutes from previous meeting

Mr. Britton inquired as to whether everyone had received minutes from the prior meeting, and made copies available to those who had not received documentation. He then asked for additions or corrections to the minutes.

Ms. Flennoy asked that the minutes from the prior meeting be updated to reflect that the Maple Park and Victory Heights Council has been out in the field three or four times, and working very hard to get the access agreements signed. The agencies did acknowledge their appreciation of the efforts and it will become a part of the official transcript from this meeting. The minutes were then accepted as written.

Mr. Britton then inquired as to whether there was any unfinished business from the October 2, 2002 meeting. No one raised any issues.

Mr. Britton moved on to the Dutch Boy on-site and off-site update, and turned the stage over to Brad Bradley.

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III. Dutch Boy Update

Off-Site
The residential yard clean ups are nearly complete. An access cutoff of November 5th has been established. All yards that need to be cleaned must be signed up by that date to ensure attention. U.S. EPA will continue to try to get access for sampling, but clean up cannot be guaranteed.

Issues related to restoration and damage from clean up is being addressed by the Entact Team, and Environmental Strategies.

On-Site
The concrete that was broken and removed by the City of Chicago during the original clean up contained some lead. N.L. industries met with the EPA and has agreed they will clean up the lead that has been exposed. There are two additional areas under concrete that may have lead-contaminated soils. At this point, there is no guarantee as to what will happen to the remaining concrete and soils.

The aforementioned clean up to which N.L. Industries has committed will occur very soon. A legal agreement is in process, but they may proceed prior to the legal agreement, as they already have their crews working on the residential clean up.

The only outstanding item will be the resolution of the soils if the City picks up the additional concrete in the two remaining areas.

Mr. Nave asked for clarification of the term “clean up.”
Mr. Bradley explained that the driving force behind the efforts at the site is lead from the paint manufacturing and smelter processes. In some areas it is found at levels considered unsafe (500 parts per million). Therefore the process is primarily lead removal with some debris removal and one area of asbestos contamination removal.

Mr. Gordon asked if the sidewalk and damaged items would be repaired.
Mr. Bradley stated that repair is expected.

Mr. Gordon further inquired what to do if they do not repair the sidewalks.

Mr. Bradley asked that people let him know if there are unrepaired areas, and he will make sure that they fix anything that they damaged. He also reminded people that they can have their interiors cleaned with a high power vacuum, and to let him know if that is desired. The key in this entire process is really to make your feelings and concerns known.

Mr. Ruffin wanted to know how concerned people should be about lots that are not getting cleaned-up.
Mr. Bradley indicated that without sampling he cannot assess the issue. He indicated that U.S. EPA will again send letters asking them to sign up so at least the EPA can get everything sampled, and there will be data that everyone can look at to see the extent of the contamination in neighboring yards. U.S. EPA is committed to trying to get every yard sampled.

Mr. Ruffin asked about empty lots, and Mr. Bradley indicated that we need to locate the owner of the parcels.

Mr. Ruffin indicated an interest in helping, and the group indicated that the specific property about which he was concerned is at Green and Halsted.

Mr. Bradley indicated that the main concern about areas that do not get cleaned-up relate to children playing in yards, and the risk cannot be quantified without sampling. Younger children are the primary concern. The EPA does not see a major concern for contamination being tracked between the two yards in the near term.

Mr. Britton verified that they really do want 100-percent sampling to indicate which ones need to be cleaned. Any time you know of areas that are not being addressed you should let U.S EPA know.

Ms. Thompson wanted to know why younger children are of greater concern.
Mr. Bradley indicated that the age groups between 18 months and 3 years put everything in their mouths and sometimes even eat dirt. Generally after 7, you do not see as much hand-to-mouth activity.

Ms. Thompson stated that some older kids eat dirt too.

Mr. Bradley agreed that it is possible.

Ms. Flennoy indicated that there is one residence occupied by an ill woman, and her children who are caring for her, and live out of the community did not know about the clean up and do not know what happened to the correspondence.

Mr. Bradley indicated another situation where the landlord did not know of the clean up until he saw crews on an adjacent property. Although he missed the November 5 deadline, they will see what they can do about the situation.

Ms. Thompson indicated that she has a wooded parcel on 4 lots and she would like the inside of her house tested, particularly an area in the basement that has a dirt floor. She also wants to know what one day of vacuuming will do after living and breathing the air for 16 years.

Mr. Bradley indicated that the vacuuming is just an extra precaution. Unless there is a lead paint issue in the house, the majority of the contamination will remain outside the house.

Ms. Thompson reaffirmed that she wants interior levels tested.

Mr. Bradley further explained that the vacuum removes the dust, not the lead in carpets or cloth furniture. The only thing you can do to get all of the lead out, is to get rid of carpets and cloth furniture and replace it with new items. He further explained that the exterior contamination levels have not been that high, so interior contamination would not be expected to be high.

Ms. Thompson asked again about testing in her house.

Mr. Bradley stated that it is not in the program.

Ms. Thompson asked again about testing the dirt area in her basement.

Mr. Britton indicated that the soil in her basement is covered (by her house), and the clean up is focusing on contamination that could have been deposited from the air. The contamination is not liquid; there would be no way for it to get into the basement.

Ms. Thompson then wanted clarification on why interiors are not being tested.

Mr. Bradley confirmed that they are not testing interiors as part of the program.

Ms. Thompson said she thought that the minutes stated that some interiors were tested.

Mr. Bradley indicated that no such testing was done by the EPA; he doesn,t know if the City tested interiors.

Discussion continued as to whether interior testing was reasonable or a possibility; at this time, it is not.

Ms. Thompson also indicated that she was concerned about the health of her grandchildren.

There is testing available through the schools and Roseland Hospital. More information is available through the City of Chicago Health Department. Future actions would depend on lead levels. The City of Chicago Health Department contact is Ed Adler (312)746-6201.

Mr. Neish wanted some clarification on the process now that they have access agreements, and Mr. Bradley explained that those sites will be sampled and the follow-up action will depend on the results of the study.

Mr. Neish wanted to know if there is a possibility that the yards would be tested even if they missed the November 5 deadline. Mr. Bradley indicated that they will be tested, it is the clean up process that it questionable. It is not the intent of the EPA to walk away from any problem.

Mr. Neish then wanted to know if people would be notified of their lead level via mail. Mr. Bradley indicated that notifications will be sent through the mail, and any that are returned will be handled personally. Mr. Bradley also explained that only four properties have come back with very high levels. Mr. Neish also wanted clarification as to what was happening with Mixed Use parcels, and Mr. Bradley explained that those are still treated as residential, and the owners of the building are contacted. However, if something is zoned commercial and used as residential, then something could slip through the cracks. The EPA will look into the matter.

Mr. Hardy wanted to know how long lead is in the air before it dissipates. Mr. Britton explained that lead does not really dissipate, which necessitates the clean up. Mr. Hardy also wanted to know who would be held responsible for the people who are sick. Mr. Bradley explained that the EPA,s role is to remove the health hazard.

Ms. Thompson wanted to know more about past exposures to lead. Ms. Pope explained that a representative from the Health Department had attended the last meeting, and was very concerned and that another representative will be invited to the next meeting. However, the EPA is dealing with the environmental issues, and that is all this meeting can address.

Mr. Oliver wanted to know more about how the area was defined. Mr. Bradley explained that a contractor did grid sampling to determine the affected area.

Ms. Flennoy wanted to let everyone know that if you want to know more about what the EPA, Health Department, State, or other officials have done there is a record at the library. She also wanted Mr. Bradley to know that the alderman is a resource if they are unable to locate any absentee landlords. She also wanted to know about “HUD:” homes. Mr. Bradley explained that HUD owned some home that they are trying to sell and did not want the clean up performed at this time, contrary to the urgings of the EPA.

Mr. Nave wanted to know if any other contaminants (other than lead) were discovered during the sampling. Mr. Bradley stated that there were no additional contaminants.

Additional inquiries were made about health issues, but they were deferred until representatives of the health department are present. There is interest in having a meeting focusing only on health.

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IV. Former West Pullman Works Update

Mr. Hamper indicated that this site is currently in a waiting mode for approval from the Illinois EPA for supplemental work.

Mr. Neish wanted to know if there were lead issues associated with the site, and Mr. Britton explained that the issue at West Pullman is solvents.

Ms. Walker informed the group that an Urban Planning student from the University of Illinois-Chicago is doing a class project on the site.

Mr. Britton informed the group that a new newsletter would be prepared as soon as a significant project milestone is reached.

Discussion indicated that the group would like to get copies of the aforementioned student research for the repository (3).

Mr. Ruffin wanted to know why the major clean up had stopped so abruptly. There was some confusion about the particular site he was referencing. Mr. Hamper provided some background on the overall clean up, but as was stated before, the project is currently in a holding pattern.

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V. Chicago Department of Environment Update

There was some discussion about the City,s interest in purchasing some properties in the area. The City is interested in doing Brownfields work – purchasing former industrial sites, overseeing clean up and selling the clean sites for redevelopment.

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VI. Next meeting date

The group then established potential dates for the next meeting: January 29, or February 5, 12, or 19. A meeting with the Health Department will try to be scheduled for December 11 or 18, 2002.

A complete transcript of this meeting is available upon request. Please contact Janet Pope at (312)353-0628 or pope.janet@epa.gov. Copies of this summary and the transcript will be placed in the information repository.

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For more information, please contact:

Brad Bradley, Remedial Project Manager
U.S. EPA
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, Illinois 60606
(312) 886-4742
bradley.brad@epa.gov

Janet Pope, Community Involvement Coor.
U.S. EPA
77 West Jackson Boulevard
Chicago, Illinois 60606
(312) 353-0628
pope.janet@epa.gov

Renante Marante
City of Department of Environment
30 N. LaSalle
Suite 2500
Chicago, Illinois
(312) 742-0123
rmarante@cityofchicago.org

Mark Britton, Community Relations Coor.
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
1021 North Grand Avenue East
Springfield, Illinois 62794-9276
(217) 524-7342
mark.britton@epa.state.il.us

Gail Walker, Public Affairs Consultant
Environmental Communications
801 South Plymouth Court
Suite 1002
Chicago, Illinois 60605
(312) 939-7640
envirocom2000@aol.com

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