Hartstein disputes Buffalo Grove landfill concerns
Buffalo Grove Trustee Lisa Stone has raised concerns about a 2005 environmental study of the Land and Lakes Landfill by Shaw Environmental, citing such issues as missing or illegible groundwater data.
But fellow trustees and Buffalo Grove Village President Elliott Hartstein on Monday questioned why Stone was not more forthcoming about e-mails she received about more recent federal and county data giving the site a clean bill of health.
Stone, however, insisted on the importance of the Shaw study, demanding of Hartstein that it be placed on the front page of the village's website.
Instead, the village Tuesday posted on its home page at vbg.org its version of events surrounding the landfill controversy with instruction on how to get an e-mailed or printed copy of key documents, including the Shaw study.
Hartstein shared a March 14 e-mail from Paul Ruesch of the federal Environmental Protection Agency to Stone, in which Ruesch tells her that the EPA conducted a site visit, discussed the matter with the Lake County Health Department and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, and reviewed information and data relating to Stone's concerns about odors, groundwater quality and operation of the gas management system at the site, located on Milwaukee Avenue between Aptakisic Road and Deerfield Parkway.
Ruesch wrote, "We have not identified operating problems at the site," adding that solar flares to burn off methane gas are operating correctly and the latest round of groundwater monitoring data from January 2010 didn't indicate any regulatory concerns. He advised constituents experiencing odors to contact the Lake County Health Department or the Illinois EPA.
Trustee Jeffrey Braiman said he was disturbed that Stone did not forward the March 14 e-mail to the board with this positive information, choosing instead to focus on the negative information in the 2005 study.
"It is important also to note that Shaw never even stepped on the property. They never did any testing," Braiman said. He said Shaw's work was based on environmental data collected by the EPA and obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
He said, "If your concern is to scare the public and blame us - that's a different situation."
Stone responded, "Let our citizens make their own decision. Trustee Braiman, I'm not trying to scare anyone. Anyone who reads that report, there is no misconstruing."
Citing the importance of the public's health and safety, she called for a continuation of the study - "to just leave it as it is not the right thing to do when you're talking about public safety and health."
Stone also said, after Monday's meeting, that the board was acting "like my information was their access to info" when former Village Manager William Brimm and Land and Lakes were their direct line. She said the board members were all alerted of their "no issue status" by e-mail. She added that Hartstein announced the news of the clearance at the time.
Monday's discussion culminated in another confrontation between Stone and Hartstein, who told her two weeks ago to "shut up." Hartstein at first tried to limit her time by setting off an alarm on his cell phone. Finally, he cut off her microphone.
Hartstein reiterated that the findings of the 2005 study were preliminary. He said the report was requested by the board in connection with the expected purchase of the property for use by the park district in 2005. He said the study was dropped because plans to purchase were abandoned. The land was eventually annexed in 2008.
Hartstein said the recent inspections are a better indication of what the facts are currently, not what was recommended or speculated about five years ago.
<img src="/graphics/bglandfill.jpg"> <div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related documents</h2> <ul class="morePdf"> <li><a href="/pdf/shawreport.pdf">A compilation of responses to Lisa Stone's FOIA on landfill, including the full Shaw Report. </a></li> </ul> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=396733">Stone defends Stone over 'shut up' comment <span class="date">[07/27/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=396589">Editorial: Extend oversight period for landfill <span class="date">[07/26/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=396317">Did Buffalo Grove board drop the ball over landfill pollution questions? <span class="date">[07/26/10]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=396318">Who runs Land and Lakes? <span class="date">[07/26/10]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>