2004 Demonstration Project
H.O.D. Landfill: AntiochJIIinois
The H.O.D. Landfill was the first Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
pilot awarded to a site where the construction of the remedy had been
completed. Stakeholder activities conducted at the H.O.D. Landfill
site informed EPA about the needs and issues associated with getting
construction complete sites back into use and led to the development of
the Return to Use initiative.
THE SITE: The H.O.D. Landfill site occupies 121 acres in Antioch,
Illinois, 51 of which constitute the landfill itself. After its closing in 1984,
the landfill was covered with a continuous clay cap. Subsequent remedial
action addressed leachate and gas extraction, waste cap improvements,
and monitored natural attenuation of ground water.
THE OPPORTUNITY: EPA issued a Preliminary Closeout Report in
June 2001 and selected the site for Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
pilot support in 2002. Approximately 14,300 people live within three miles
of the site. The site lies just east of the Antioch Community High School,
which is in need of athletic fields. The school superintendent saw the
cleaned up, grass-covered landfill and its associated wetlands as potential
amenities for the high school, and the site's potentially responsible party
(PRP), Waste Management Inc., had cleaned up the site in a way that
would facilitate future use as athletic fields.
THE BARRIERS: EPA worked with stakeholders at the site to determine
what barriers prevented redevelopment. They were: uncertainty of the site's
safety; a fence prohibiting access to the site; and site access restrictions
that prohibited use of the site for recreational purposes.
THE SOLUTION: EPA worked with the local stakeholders to update the
risk assessment and demonstrated that the remedy would remain protective
under a recreational use scenario. EPA then issued an Explanation of
Significant Differences to remove the unnecessary requirements of the
remedy that were impeding reuse, and prepared a Ready for Reuse (RfR)
Determination to reassure Antioch residents that the site is protective for
use as sports fields.
THE SCHOOL FACILITIES: Methane gas extracted from the landfill
currently supplies heat and electricity to the school. The school district
estimates a savings of $100,000 per year by reducing energy costs and
Barriers:
Institutional controls impeding
reuse; Superfund site stigma
Solution:
Innovative thinking by local
stakeholders; Explanation of
Significant Differences; revised
risk assessment; Ready for Reuse
Determination
Before:
Cleaned up landfill; 121 acres of
grass-covered land near Antioch
Community High School
After:
Athletic fields, power supply
for the high school, and restored
wetlands
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
updated June 2009
-------
selling the electricity generated during nights and weekends to ComEd, the utilities company that serves the
Antioch area. The wetlands area along one side of the site offers an example wetlands habitat for environmental
education and school science projects. Thirty acres of the H.O.D. Landfill are being converted to athletic fields
to serve the adjacent Antioch County High School. When completed, the athletic facility will include five soccer
and field hockey fields, three softball fields, and 12 tennis courts. Three soccer and field hockey fields have been
completed and were used beginning in the fall of 2007. The tennis courts on the site are now also complete; in
fact, they hosted the 2005 conference championships. A concession stand and restroom building have also been
constructed to serve students and spectators. In April 2008, an opening event celebrated the completion of the
first phase of the Tim Osmond Park, which includes an additional 2 football fields, 1 baseball field, and 2 practice
fields, Frisbee golf, running trail, sledding hill, pavilion, and playground equipment.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Tom Bloom, Region 5 Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at
(312) 886-1967 or bloom.thomas@,epa.gov or Karen Mason-Smith, the site Remedial Project Manager, at (312)
886-6150 or n mith.karen@,epa.gov.
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Superfund Redevelopment Initiative
updated June 2009
------- |