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Lowell Indiana Landfill Leaking Chemicals Into The Kankakee River Could Be Source Of High Cancer Rates In Kankakee County.

This story ran on nwitimes.com October 4, 2006 Lowell, Indiana | Lake County Sheriff Rogelio "Roy" Dominguez warned Tuesday that anyone using the four-wheeler tracks that criss-cross the old Feddeler Landfill could become overcome by toxic fumes. The Lake County Environmental Law Enforcement Task Force tested the 39-acre site in September and found hydrogen cyanide, acrylonitrile and methane emanating from seeps in the southern portion of the landfill. While the gasses are localized on the landfill, the sheriff also warned that children playing on the landfill grounds "could be overcome very quickly," said Steven Henshaw, with Enviroforensics, a private company that tested the landfill. The landfill, located on Ind. 2 one-half mile east of U.S. 41, operated as a construction and demolition site. However, the recent tests verified the presence of illegally dumped toxic waste. The barrels of hazardous waste continue to leach out chemicals into Bruce Ditch, which drains into the Kankakee River, authorities said.

The landfill closed more than three years ago after the owner went bankrupt. Dominguez met with Lake County Commissioner Gerry Scheub, D-Schererville, on Tuesday afternoon to talk with a fence contractor about securing the site. Until then, Dominguez said an officer will patrol the site to prevent anyone from using the area for walking or biking. Samples from private wells near the landfill did not indicate the presence of chemicals above the established drinking water standards, Dominguez said. "We (the task force) will be investigating former owners of the landfill and those companies that sent or brought waste to the landfill," Dominguez said. "Our goal is to make those parties -- responsible for violating environmental laws -- pay for investigating and cleaning up the problem. Our investigation will pursue both criminal and civil liabilities." Scheub said securing the landfill is just the beginning. "This should have been done many years ago," Scheub said. "Without the sheriff's involvement, we'd still be spinning our wheels. If this gets into the aquifers, we'll be facing a serious problem."

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Northwest Indiana Times

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