Wednesday, July 23: Equipment was hauled in
Thursday, July 24: Cleanup started with cutting trees
Friday, July 25: The cement slab had been broken down
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One hundred thirty two businesses and residents around the former location of the Morrison Gas Plant received an informational letter from ComEd on what to expect when engineers began cleaning up the location. The former gas plant was located at the corner of Orange Street and Market Street. Clean up of this area began on Wednesday, July 23, 2008.
The cover letter read:
Dear Morrison Neighbor:
ComEd and Nicor Gas will be conducting an environmental cleanup this summer at the site of a former manufactured gas plant in Morrison, Illinois. This site is located at the southeast intersection of Orange Street and W. Market Street/ The cleanup work will involve site preparation, removal of consruction debris, soil evacuation and backfilling.
The work will include the use of heavy equipment such as backhoes and front-end loaders to remove debris and soils. Work activities are scheduled to occure on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Weekend work is not anticipated at this time.
A fact sheet is attached to this letter to provide a brief summary of the cleanup project and the expected construction activities.
July 2008
Background
Later this month, ComEd and Nicor Gas will begin a cleanup project to address residual materials from a former manufactured gas plant that once operated in Morrison, Illinois. This site is located at the southeast intersection of Orange Street and W. Market Street.
The Morrison plant produced gas for area residents and businesses from approximately 1906 to 1941. Gas was produced using a variety of processes that typically involved the use of coal, oil, or both. A common by-product of the manufacturing process was coal tar, which was often stored in underground structures, then sold. With the coming of natural gas pipelines in the 1940's, gas manufacturing was essentially rendered obsolete. Following shutdown, most of the above-ground structures associated with the gas plant operation were demolished.
The Cleanup Project
It is expected the work will take approximately 8 weeks to complete. Site workers will first clear the site and remove debris, then use construction equipment to excavate soils from the site. The depths of excavation will vary from 2 feet to 20 feet. The removed soils will be transported in covered dump trucks to the Prairie Hill Landfill, located approximately 3 miles east of the site. The excavated area will be backfilled with clean materials brought to the site and graded to match the surrounding site features.
This project will be conducted under the direction and oversight of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) through its Site Remediation Program.
What you may notice
Beginning in late July, temporary construction facilities and site control equipment (e.g. trailer and fencing) will be installed to prepare the site for the cleanup. In August, truck traffic in the area will increase as the excavation work begins. To reduce the inconvenience to residents, trucks will follow a direct route (primarily via Orange Street) to Route 30 East to the landfill and the backfill quarry.
An ambient air-monitoring program will be implemented during the cleanup. This program is designed to address any odors or dust that may come from site activities. The monitoring will include both hand-held instruments and stationary devices installed at the perimeter of the site to assist site personnel in controlling odor and dust emission during the cleanup activities. People in the vicinity may notice an occasional odor similar to roofing or road tar during construction activities. In addition, people may notice site workers wearing protective equipment in compliance with federal worker-safety regulations.
All site activities such as excavation, transporting and backfilling will take place during regular business hours to minimize potential inconvenience to nearby residents.
For more information, please contact:
Jim Fox
ComEd External Affairs Manager
(815) 284-5800; iarnesk.fox@exeloncorp.com
For information regarding the role of the Illinois EPA in overseeing this project, please contact:
Stan Black
Office of Community Relations
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
(217) 785-1427; Stan.Black(g)lllinois.gov
What do they do with the dirt that is taken from this site? Matt Bowman, construction manager of the site, and Jing Garbiel, consultant for ComEd told us that the soil would be hauled to the Prairie Hill Recycling and Disposal Facility. Landfill lab testing has been done on samples of the soil taken from this site. The results of the testing have met State requirements and the landfill has verified that the soil is suitable for disposal in their facility.
In April of 2006 TheCity1.com did a story on the first stages of the cleanup. To read that story see Voluntary Clean-up Conducted on Former Gas
Plant.
by Dawn Zuidema, theCity1.com
July 25, 2008
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