Return to Use Initiative
2004 Demonstration Project
Tri-County Landfill: South Elgin, IL
After a site has been cleaned up, if any waste has been left on
site, EPA must reevaluate the implementation and performance
of the site's remedy every five years to ensure that the remedy
continues to protect human health and the environment. This
process is called a Five-Year Review. This thorough evaluation
provides an opportunity for EPA to examine not only past
cleanup actions at the site but also the future of the site. Region
5 began the Tri-County Landfill site's Five-Year Review at the
same time that EPA sought to establish demonstration projects
for the Return to Use Initiative. As part of the Initiative in 2004,
EPA used the Tri-County Landfill's Five-Year Review as a testing
ground for how the Superfund Five-Year Review process can be
used to evaluate and support the future use of sites.
THE SITE: From 1961 until 1976, the Tri-County Landfill and the neighboring Elgin Landfill, both in South Elgin, Illinois,
accepted solid and liquid commercial and industrial waste. When EPA detected volatile organic compounds in
downgradient ground water wells in 1984, ten thousand residents within three miles of the landfill were using ground
water as their drinking water source. EPA and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency recommended that area
residents not drink water from these wells. Further investigation revealed contamination in landfill surface soils and the
surface water of adjacent wetlands. EPA and potentially responsible parties took action at the site to construct a landfill
cap and a gas collection system. Ground water is being monitored to determine the effectiveness of the cap in reducing
ground water contamination.
THE OPPORTUNITY: The Tri-County Landfill may present a good opportunity for recreational reuse. The western edge
of the site borders on a prairie path and the Kane County Forest Preserve is interested in developing walking trails and
recreational fields on the site. However,these plans are currently on hold because the Illinois Department ofTransportation
has plans to build a road that might interfere with the forest preserve's plan and other development in the area.
THE BARRIER: The landfill area of the site is fenced and topped with barbed wire. A potentially responsible party
operates a transfer facility adjacent to the Tri-County Landfill. On-going activity at this facility provides a high level
of site security by making it difficult for unauthorized personnel to access the site. In addition, Woodland Landfill to
the west of the Tri-County Landfill is an operating municipal landfill facility. On-going activity at this facility will also
discourage unauthorized personnel from accessing the site until reuse modifications are implemented.
THE FIVE-YEAR REVIEW AND FUTURE REUSE: Because all reuse plans in the area are on hold, the Tri-County Landfill
site is participating in the Return to Use initiative as a demonstration project that examines the Five-Year Review process
as a forum for considering Superfund site reuse, The Army Corps of Engineers completed a Five-Year Review for the
site in September 2004 with special emphasis on site reuse considerations. Because of this, EPA hopes that when the
transportation corridor issue in South Elgin is resolved, the community will better understand appropriate reuse options
for the site. EPA is currently working with landowners to implement appropriate and effective institutional controls,
which will help to facilitate safe reuse when local conditions allow.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:Tom Bloom, Region 5 Superfund Redevelopment Coordinator, at (312) 886-1967
or bloom.thomas@epa.gov.
Superfund Redevelopment Initiative	1
updated. December 2005

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