Actions taken to get rid of methane leak near school

Workers will install equipment next week to remove a pocket of methane gas discovered underground on Greenbrook Elementary School property in Hanover Park.

The school is located near the former Mallard Lake landfill, which officials found was leaking methane in fall 2007.

There is no methane in the air at the school, and students and staff are not at risk, officials with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said.

The EPA is monitoring cleanup of the landfill, owned by the DuPage County Forest Preserve District and operated by BFI Waste Systems.

Methane, which is produced by decomposing garbage, is explosive when it reaches certain levels in the air.

The gas was found near the west side of the Greenbrook building at a depth of about 22 feet, EPA On-Scene Coordinator Steve Faryan said.

Since the discovery of the methane leak, more than 240 homes west of the landfill have been tested for gas. The EPA has required installation of several gas-extraction wells that essentially suck up methane and send it back to the landfill.

Another extraction well will be installed at Greenbrook this week, Faryan said. The landfill is part of the Mallard Lake Forest Preserve near County Farm and Schock roads in northwest DuPage County.

For more information, contact epa.gov/region5/sites/mallard.

Daily Herald Staff Writer Kimberly Pohl contributed to this report.