Illinois Power Plant Attempts to End Lake Michigan's Toxic Asbestos Legacy

Lake Michigan continues to spread its toxic legacy, this time in Waukegan, as the owners of a local power plant attempt to clean out the chunks of asbestos from a giant sand pile.

Having recently obtained a permit from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to carry out the task, Midwest Generation will now sift through 15,000 cubic yards of sand. The sand has been dredged over the last several years from a nearby canal, which draws water from nearby Lake Michigan. The water is used to cool the coal-fired plant.

The company hopes to sell the sand to road builders, and is testing a utility which screens out asbestos to make the sand safe for sale.

However, Illinois EPA officials are concerned about the possibility of microscopic asbestos fibers becoming airborne and blowing through to the surrounding residential neighborhoods. Evidence has proven that inhaling small asbestos fibers can lead to a variety of health issues, including a rare form of cancer, called mesothelioma. Right now there is no cure for this deadly cancer and mesothelioma treatment varies.

As a result, the EPA has ordered Midwest Generation to cover the screening area with a tent. The company will use fans to draw air inside the tent through filters, with the effect of screening out asbestos material. After the air is filtered, it will then be released from the tent. The EPA has also told Midwest Generation they will be required to monitor the air outside the tent to ensure asbestos fibers are not being released outdoors.

Charlie Parnell, a spokesman for Midwest Generation, said, "We're looking for ways to remove the sand from the property without taking it to a landfill. This is a problem that affects a lot of people, not just us."

The EPA hopes these procedures will finally resolve the long-standing problems of asbestos washing up on the shores of Lake Michigan, including the highly popular public beach at Illinois Beach State Park. The Midwest Generation sand pile is located next to an old Johns Manville factory, which for more than six decades manufactured asbestos-containing pipes and shingles.

State and federal officials have repeatedly said the local beach is safe for public use, even though chunks of asbestos have frequently been spotted washing up on shore. Last fall, an EPA team tested the beach to determine whether standard beach activities, such as playing volleyball and tossing a Frisbee, could result in asbestos exposure. The tests indicated that the public faces very little risk of exposure while engaged in normal beach play.

Midwest Generation initiated their rather ambitious project in July, but the EPA has not yet required that the public be notified, as the company is currently engaged only in testing their sand-sifting procedures. If the project is expanded, then the public must be notified.