News Releases from Region 05

EPA begins public comment period on proposed soil cleanup plan for Bautsch-Gray Mine Superfund site in Galena, Illinois

Contact Information: Rachel Bassler (bassler.rachel@epa.gov ) 312-886-7159

For Immediate Release: No. 19-OPA046

GALENA, Ill. (July 12, 2019) – On July 8, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began a 30-day public comment period on a proposed cleanup plan to remove soil contamination in residential and tailing areas of the Bautsch-Gray Mine Superfund site in Galena, Illinois.

EPA will hold a public meeting to present the cleanup plan and hold a public comment session at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 18, at the Prairie Ridge Retirement Center community room, 1 Prairie Ridge St., Galena.

The former Bautsch lead and zinc mine operated from 1946 to 1975. After its closure, tailings from the mine property continued to erode and move toward residential properties, heavily wooded areas, and Smallpox Creek. In 2012, EPA added the site to the National Priorities List of the nation’s most contaminated sites.

EPA will review and respond to comments before finalizing a cleanup plan. The agency will accept comments on the proposal from July 8 until Aug. 7, 2019. The public may submit comments:

Via email at: muhtsun.ruth@epa.gov.



Mail them to Ruth Muhtsun, U.S. EPA Region 5 (mail code RE-6J), 77 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604.



Submit comments online at: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/bautsch-gray-mine.



For more information about the site, visit: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/bautsch-gray-mine.





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