Madigan is asking a LaSalle County Circuit Court judge to order the dumps about 60 miles southwest of Chicago to halt operations after numerous alleged violations, including newly documented cases of banned materials dumped in the sites this year.
| Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan moved Monday to shut down a pair of so-called “clean-fill” quarries accused of taking in harmful materials that threaten to pollute local drinking water sources in LaSalle County.
Madigan is asking a LaSalle County Circuit Court judge to order the dumps about 60 miles southwest of Chicago to halt operations after numerous alleged violations, including newly documented cases of banned materials dumped in the sites this year.
Some communities, politicians and environmental groups have pressed state lawmakers to require groundwater testing around the more than 90 Illinois quarries accepting construction debris that’s supposed to be restricted to rock, concrete, bricks and soil.
Attorneys for Madigan’s office allege that even after filing initial lawsuits in May against quarry owners Sheridan-Joliet Land Development LLC and Sheridan Sand & Gravel Co. that officials at the dump sites continued accepting prohibited materials.
In January, the state EPA inspector reported “a distinct petroleum odor emanating” from two large soil piles at the Sheridan site, according to court filings.
That same site is now operating with an expired permit, according to the court filing by Madigan.
“We will continue to work closely with our General Assembly on legislation to enact change, while working cooperatively with the Attorney General to ensure that these sites receive the proper oversight,” Illinois EPA Director Alec Messina said in a statement to the BGA.
Madigan and others say groundwater around the construction dump sites need to be tested for potential contaminants.
Quarry owners, construction companies and trade unions have blocked bills in the Illinois Legislature this past session that would have required groundwater testing.