Lake County incineration plan draws heat from residents

Grass-roots opposition to burning trash as an alternative to landfills is gathering steam, as concerned residents work to get thousands of signatures to present to the Lake County Board.

Incineration is included as one of several alternatives to dwindling landfill space in the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County's pending five-year management plan.

Residents in the Prairie Crossing neighborhood near the Countryside landfill in Grayslake initiated the opposition, but say it has swelled beyond the self-described environmentally conscious community.

With a Web site, www.incineratorfreelakecounty.com a petition drive and even Twitter updates, the group wants incineration stricken as a possibility from the plan, which will be considered by the county board Dec. 8.

"We have many people in all the communities working on it for us. We're aiming for multiple thousand signatures," said Elizabeth Miller, spokeswoman for the group.

Opponents say incineration poses health risks and is avoidable and unnecessary.

"We would like it to be shelved. I'm concerned about the health of my children and the children located in Lake County," said Anne Ise, a nurse who lives in Prairie Crossing.

Incineration is one of several alternatives in the plan, approved last month by the SWALCO board of directors in conjunction with a citizens advisory committee.

A public hearing was held and a comment period runs through Nov. 30 at www.lakecountyil.gov/swalco.

"We're not advocating an incinerator. We're looking at basically all options," said Walter Willis, executive director of SWALCO.

Those include a new landfill, solid waste transfer stations or thermal, biological or chemical conversion of garbage.

Should the plan be approved as written, any alternative, including incineration would be subject to extensive review and oversight, Willis said. That would include "full blown assessments", disclosure of technology, environmental impacts, emissions and other aspects.

"All that would be open to public oversight and critique. If a developer cannot find a willing government body ... it's just not going to happen," he said. "There's no sneaking the site in."

Lake County Board Member Pat Carey, of Grayslake, said she has received "quite a few" e-mails from constituents about the issue and is concerned about potential pollutants.

"I'm doing some research," she said.