Demolition Blankets Chicago Neighborhood in Dust During COVID19 Pandemic, Community Calls for Immediate Relief

CHICAGO, IL -- Sierra Club is joining the call for action after the implosion of the Crawford coal plant smokestack by Hilco Redevelopment Partners (Hilco) on Chicago’s Southwest Side, blanketed the Little Village neighborhood in a dust cloud that fogged streets and burned lungs. The demolition’s timing on Saturday was made all the more concerning by the COVID-19 pandemic still sweeping through Illinois. The novel coronavirus has been shown to be more dangerous to populations impacted by heavy air pollution. For more than two years, the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) has raised grave concern about the site's developer and design. The organization has protested the trade of one polluting entity for another; a warehouse and distribution facility with significant diesel truck traffic will continue to impact this overburdened environmental justice community.

Images courtesy of Little Village Environmental Justice Organization

“Time and time again, Hilco has ignored community demands for transparency, accountability, and practices that would protect Little Village and surrounding neighborhoods. We have raised the alarm and warned decision-makers of the company’s dangerous disrespect for the neighborhood that fought to shut down the coal plant Hilco is now working to turn into a new polluting warehouse. This tragic event was entirely avoidable, and it is crucial to investigate how and why this implosion was allowed to move forward by City authorities. We need an investigation and accountability, and we need it now.” said Kim Wasserman, Executive Director of LVEJO.

Over nearly 100 years of operation, the Crawford plant was one of the nation's most severe polluters. The plant closed in 2012, along with the nearby Fisk coal plant after more than a decade of community action in defense of clean air and healthy community. Though closed, the plant continues to be a source of strain for the neighborhood as community goals and needs are not felt to be centered in the redevelopment plans for the site. Local activists have continually raised the alarm about the lack of oversight on Hilco’s demolition. Despite requests to delay, the City allowed Hilco to keep the demolition schedule, a decision that may have severe consequences for a community already impacted by respiratory health issues. Neighbors and community groups were only notified on Thursday about the Saturday demolition, giving residents very little time to prepare or challenge the decision. 

“While operating, the Crawford coal plant was a case study for environmental injustice. Since its closure, Little Village residents have seen a tepid commitment to community health and meaningful community participation. It is never acceptable to risk the lives of residents in favor of a developer’s construction timeline. But to allow the demolition of a coal smokestack during a global pandemic; in a community with one of the highest rates of asthma in the entire city; with less than 48 hours notice for households to prepare or defend themselves; on a holiday weekend when families seek to hold on to a glimmer of normalcy; while under a mandatory shelter-in-place order; in a Latinx community already impacted by the novel coronavirus speaks to a reckless disregard for racial equity, environmental justice, and human life. Residents and allies aren’t here to listen to feigned concern. This is the moment to stand firm in the values of accountability, transparency, and equity we were promised," said Sierra Club’s Kyra Woods.

Sierra Club is supporting LVEJO’s community demands for immediate relief from state, city, and Hilco decision makers in response to the disaster:

1. There must be immediate and comprehensive public disclosure of the mix of toxins and materials that made up the polluted dust cloud — the stack constituents — to enable affected residents to seek appropriate medical treatment and take any protective measures possible. 

2. Hilco must take responsibility for all costs to assess the release of toxic dust and to remediate its effects, including a full cleanup of residences and all affected community areas. Hilco must also be held responsible to cover medical care for community members that result from this tragedy. A study to determine the nature and extent of the release and its impact to nearby residential and commercial properties must also happen immediately. Public disclosure of the pollutants will enable this to move forward. 

3. We have reports that the dust entered the inside of homes of nearby residents during the implosion. The City of Chicago must immediately release guidance on safely cleaning and handling of this dust by residents who are waiting for more formal cleanup while living with the dangerous dust inside their own homes. In the meantime, we strongly urge residents to be as careful as possible and avoid close contact with the dust as much as you can while the City determines what is in it. Use gloves, wear masks, stay away from it, and try not to disturb it as much as you can.

4. LVEJO and the Little Village community renew our call for perimeter Particulate Matter (PM) monitoring at the fenceline of this site, a request that was previously made to and rejected by Chicago Dept. of Public Health and IL EPA last summer based on evidence of dust releases during demolition activities.

5. The release of air pollution beyond the boundaries of the property likely is a violation of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. This case must be referred to the Illinois Attorney General for investigation and Hilco must be prosecuted by the State of Illinois for these violations to the fullest extent of the law. 

6. There must be an immediate suspension of demolition activities on the site during the stay-at-home order and until the city can conduct an independent review of the demolition, the oversight exercised by city agencies, and additional measures that must be implemented to ensure the health, safety of nearby residents.  This suspension of demolition must be extended to ALL sites across Chicago. This release is exactly the type of occurrence that a city demolition permit must be designed to prevent, but it did not do so here. 

7. High quality protective masks must be distributed to those living in the Little Village community and adjacent areas impacted by the spread of dust. Residents have notified us that they only received 2-3 one-time-use masks but have multiple residents living in the building.  Distribution should not just be the immediate surrounding blocks, but also include all the residents and the community incarcerated at Cook County Jail.

8. The Cook County Assessor's Office must rescind the $19.7 Million dollar tax break Hilco received in January of 2019.