[Peace] Article in the News Gazette.

[Marti Wilkinson]

Ameren says area poses no danger; '09 cleanup likely By Mike
Monson<http://www.news-gazette.com/news/reporter/mmonson/> Friday
December 7, 2007

CHAMPAIGN – Ameren and state environmental officials say they do not believe
the site of an old coal gasification plant at Fifth and Hill streets poses
any immediate health threat to neighbors.

They also say that Ameren is well into the planning stages for a
multimillion-dollar excavation and cleanup of the site, which Ameren expects
to take place in 2009.

"This is not a situation where there is a health risk to the neighborhood,"
said Ameren spokesman Leigh Morris. "We don't have a situation where there's
any immediate health risk."

That comment was echoed by Stan Black, community relations coordinator for
the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in Springfield.

"All the information we have points to the site not being a risk for the
neighbors," Black said. "We're waiting for a site investigation report (from
Ameren), which we expect to get this month, that will give us much more
information."

A community meeting to discuss the site and cleanup efforts is planned for
noon to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Douglass Branch Library, 504 E. Grove St., C.

The north Champaign site where the cleanup will occur once housed a plant
that manufactured gas for heating and lighting. The plant made gas by
heating coal and causing it to react with steam. It was in operation from
1887 to 1955.

The plant produced coal tar as a byproduct, which was left on site. Coal tar
contains chemicals known as polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons. Benzene* *has
also been found on the site, Black said.

Benzene and some polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons are known carcinogens,
and have been found in some off-site soil samples at 15 feet below the
ground surface, Black said. Those compounds have not been found in
groundwater offsite, Black said.

In 1997 and 1998, the former owner of the site, Illinois Power, removed the
underground structures from the site where coal tar was stored. Ameren
became owner of the site when it purchased Illinois Power two years ago.

Brian Martin, a consulting environmental scientist for Ameren who formerly
worked for Illinois Power, said the 3.5-acre site has seen some migration of
soil contamination off the site, which is fenced off, to neighboring
properties. That migration is "well below the surface, maybe 20 feet or so,"
said Martin, who added that Ameren will be doing further investigation of
off-site contamination next year.

At such a depth, the soil migration doesn't present a health risk, Martin
said.

Groundwater testing wells located around the site "are generally pretty
clean," he said. Directly underneath the site, groundwater is contaminated
in some areas, he said.

Martin said that, at the request of site neighbors, two individual
investigations have been done. One neighbor was concerned that water
infiltrating his basement might be contaminated. Tests done in 2005 showed
the water was clean, he said.

Another neighbor was concerned whether soil in a vegetable garden was
contaminated. Tests also showed that soil was clean, Martin said.

Any cleanup of the site will involve extensive excavation done under a
metal-framed plastic tent* *that is impermeable and contains a
carbon-filtration air handling system to protect the public, Martin and
Morris said.

"Most of the really gooey stuff is gone," Martin said. "You can still have
pockets of the stuff (coal tar). It's not that different from the cleanup of
underground gasoline tanks."

Martin said the north half of the site will undergo an extensive excavation.
The exact cleanup plan still has to be devised. In some instances,
contaminated soil that is not a health risk can be capped, such as with a
clay liner or asphalt. On-site treatment of contaminated soil is also
possible, he said.

Ameren expects to submit the site investigation report within two weeks to
the state EPA. It will report the results of soil borings and groundwater
well samples and give a complete description of contamination at the site,
according to Black.

After that is approved by the state EPA, Ameren will begin work on a
remedial objectives report, which will determine the cleanup objectives for
pollutants found at or near the site. The level of cleanup in part will be
determined by the future use of the site, Black said, with stricter
standards required if it will be used residentially in the future, as
opposed to commercial or industrial uses.

The third report that must be produced is the remedial action plan, which
details exactly the cleanup steps that Ameren plans to take and requires
state EPA approval, Black said. Once the work is done, Ameren would file a
remedial action completion report with the state agency.

The state EPA would then issue a "no further remediation" letter for the
property, which would permanently be attached to the property deed at the
Champaign County recorder's office, Black said. The letter means "the site
does not pose a risk to the environment or public health," Black said.

Ameren is working with the state EPA through its voluntary site remediation
program and has registered 25 Illinois sites for cleanup.
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