West Calumet yard displays EPA warning sign about contaminated soil

East Chicago's lead cleanup bill passes first test

Contributed By:The 411 News

With a show of support from the East Chicago mayor’s office and residents who traveled to the state house Wednesday morning, Rep. Earl Harris’ House Bill 1344 was approved unanimously in its first reading by the House Committee on Environmental Affairs.

Harris’ bill is seeking assistance from the state legislature to help respond to the cleanup of lead and arsenic found in the soil, and more recent findings of lead in the drinking water that some have called an environmental disaster far worse than the Flint, MI water crisis.

The proposed legislation asks for solutions beyond the consent decree worked out by the USEPA in 2014 for East Chicago neighborhoods included in the US Smelter and Lead Superfund Site Cleanup. That agreement, signed by current owners of metal smelters that caused the contamination and will pay for the cleanup, began unraveling in the summer of 2016. The EPA has said the agreement will be renegotiated. “It’s a big mess,” said Sen. Lonnie Randolph of East Chicago. “It’s like you go to pick up a rock on the ground and you find that it’s just the tip of a boulder.”

Rep. Harris wants the Indiana Dept. of Environmental Management (IDEM) to “cooperate with and provide assistance to the EPA with sampling, excavation, and removal of contaminated soil and restoration work in the East Chicago area of special concern.”

House Bill 1344 also asks for the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) to cooperate with and provide assistance to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for relocation of East Chicago residents affected by the contamination.

Another provision in the bill asks the state’s attorney general to collect payment from the EPA for services provided by the state agencies.

If the bill is passed with its current provisions, East Chicago residents will get annual tests for lead and arsenic. And the School City of East Chicago will be reimbursed for students who left the district because of the contamination.

The Federation of Interfaith Organization’s Rev. Cheryl Rivera said, “The EPA came out and said last week that everybody in East Chicago should have a filter in their homes. In nearly 90% of the homes, the drinking water is contaminated with lead. Clean water is a civil right and public health right. That’s why we’re here.”

Mayor Anthony Copeland told the committee of the city’s dilemma with water testing. “IDEM came in and tested the water; as of yet they haven’t given us the results. So we can’t even confirm what IDEM or any other agencies we may want to consult with… to tell us how to attack this problem. It’s like going to your doctor and he tells you to take a test. Then he won’t give you the test results, but wants you to get open heart surgery.”

Committee chair David Wolkins told the mayor, “IDEM is here and we’ll get back to you.”

The bill heads for a House second reading next week, where amendments may be offered.

Story Posted:02/08/2017