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Saturday, April 23, 2005

Environment - Stories today

"Slurry task force seeks to protect the environment" is the headline to an AP story published today in the Louisville Courier Journal. Some quotes:

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Research into nearby old underground mineworks should be required for permits for coal slurry ponds, and new slurry disposal methods should be considered, a new study says.

The Black Water Task Force that conducted the yearlong study also recommended more regular inspections of slurry ponds and piping. The recommendations were contained in a 58-page report released yesterday. * * *

Coal slurry -- commonly called black water -- results from the washing and preparation of coal for market. The mixture of water and small particles of coal, rock and clay is typically pumped into an impoundment and allowed to settle.

In October 2000, black water in a Martin County Coal Corp. impoundment, which had been seeping into an abandoned underground mine, broke through and a flood of thick, gooey sludge rushed into open waterways.

"Timber Trails developer invites state oversight" is the headline to a story today in the Chicago Tribune. Some quotes:
Developers of the former Timber Trails golf course in Western Springs enrolled in a voluntary remediation program with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency this week, hoping the agency's oversight will quell public fears of contamination at the site.

Dartmoor Homes Vice President Brian Taylor said developers are going to figure out which areas need to be tested at the site at Wolf and Plainfield Roads, take soil borings in the next week and then submit an action plan to the agency. * * *

Critics of the controversial development, including some who worry about the number of trees being cut as well as potential environmental hazards from the pesticides used at the former golf course, had asked the state agency to get involved. Until now, the agency had only conducted some brief site inspections regarding air quality.

Dartmoor Homes, which is planning 338 units of housing, has battled with some residents and neighbors, including the group Save the Timber, who worry about overtaxing public services and roads in the area and about the loss of the trees. Developers had promised to test the soil for contaminants before construction but cut down some trees on the property April 8, before samples were taken.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 23, 2005 08:39 AM
Posted to Environment