Buffalo Grove won't change decision on televising IEPA hearing

Buffalo Grove will not televise an upcoming Illinois Environment Protection Agency hearing on the Land and Lakes landfill, despite the urging of the Better Government Association to reconsider.

The hearing, scheduled for 6-8 p.m. Nov. 9 at Buffalo Grove Village Hall, is about whether the IEPA will continue monitoring the landfill, located along Milwaukee Avenue.

The BGA took up the issue at the urging of ousted trustee Lisa Stone, who was recalled by voters in Tuesday's election.

In a Nov. 3 e-mail addressed to the Buffalo Grove village board, BGA Policy and Government Affairs Coordinator Emily Miller said the agency's board and leadership is behind this issue.

“The video capabilities featured on your webpage indicate a commitment to transparency and openness in public forums; we see no reason you would not extend that same level of transparency to this IEPA hearing,” Miller wrote.

Miller continued, “Government has a vested interest in ensuring taxpayers have access to vital information of public interest and concern. We can think of few greater issues of concern than the upcoming hearing a forum that will address monitoring whether phenol, a known toxin, is polluting the groundwater your citizens rely on.”

The Buffalo Grove Village Board decided in October the hearing will not be televised citing concerns with cost and setting a precedent for other groups. Trustees Stone and Beverly Sussman voted in favor of televising the event.

“I'm thankful that the BGA is stepping in,” Stone said. “I would hope that this government takes seriously when an 87-year-old watchdog group says we are not comfortable with your transparency on this.”

However, there has been no change in the board's original position, said Deputy Village Manager Ghida Neukirch.

Neukirch said the village has received a few requests from people wanting to tape the hearing themselves.

“If they are that interested and they want to videotape it for record, they are certainly welcome to do so,” she said. “I would encourage those people to come over a little bit early. We just want to make sure that it's set up so that the meeting is efficient and no access aisles are blocked.”