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Lack of IEPA expert delays Sterigenics action

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Illinois

The state and federal Environmental Protection Agency knew for eight months that the Sterigenics firm in Willowbrook was causing a “cancer cluster” in the southwest Chicago suburbs before informing the public, and the Illinois EPA is so understaffed it can’t supply an expert to get the firm shut down, according to Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

Madigan’s office issued a statement Friday saying: “The Rauner administration hid information on the increased risks from the Sterigenics plant for over eight months. We then had to fight with IEPA to get access to needed information. We still do not have an expert from IEPA who can testify in court and prove that Sterigenics should be immediately shut down. Nonetheless, we are moving as quickly as possible to finalize legal action.”

That came as the Chicago Tribune was reporting that it had obtained a letter showing that the U.S. EPA informed the IEPA of the elevated cancer risk in the area surrounding the Willowbrook Sterigenics facility late last year. […]

In October, as local residents were rallying outside the Thompson Center where Rauner’s Chicago offices are located to demand answers, Rauner’s IEPA was asking Madigan to step in and use her authority to close down Sterigenics.

As Madigan pointed out Friday, it hasn’t been able to proceed with that legal action because the IEPA hasn’t supplied an expert to testify. That’s not surprising, in that sources say Rauner has “gutted” the IEPA and left it understaffed. That has left Madigan’s office to take on issues the IEPA should be policing itself.

From what I understand, AG Madigan’s office has been trying to find its own expert since the IEPA revealed it had nobody on staff to handle the case.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:23 am

Comments

But we don’t need regulations or the EPA, right? The free market system will self-regulate, right? Right? /s

Comment by MSIX Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:32 am
“…sources say Rauner has “gutted” the IEPA and left it understaffed.”

I believe that statement since Rauner has gutted the Education agencies and other state agencies too.

Comment by M Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:34 am
Just when you thought his mismanagement of the state couldn’t get any worse. Holy shlamoley.

Comment by Nick Name Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:34 am
“The free market system will self-regulate, right? ”

Evan the free market needs staff and boundaries to operate.

Comment by Mama Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:36 am
Subject matter experts at regulatory agencies get in the way of political decisions based on crony capitalism and other types of corruption.
Also- That’s were union protections benefit the citizens of the state. Qualified agency subject matter experts can’t be openly retaliated against for siding with facts and evidence over political agendas of regulatory boards, agencies, and commissions.

Comment by Duopoly Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:39 am
Add the ICC to the list of gutted agencies. The former campaign worker and self proclaimed “CEO” (literally - not a joke) of the ICC has fired, reassigned, and forced out everyone he could. The remaining union employees he couldn’t touch have hourly countdowns to retirement and/or are just hoping to survive until he and his minions are replaced. Meanwhile, the utilities are lovin’ it.

Comment by Nobody Sent Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:43 am
Rauners perfidy
Of hiding what was going on
The destruction of the administrative state
Bannonism
Agencies which help
Agencies which protect
Agencies that administer
All husks
Dried
Understaffed husks

Years ago I wound rant about the collapse
Of the state workforce
this is what it looks like

The great Rauner perfidy
Suck dry the administrative state
To nourish the parasitic
No bid Multinational corporate contractors
Hundreds of millions
Probable billions in our economic lifeblood
Sucked out
Illinois is a husk
Not Madigan
All Rauner

Comment by Honeybear Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:50 am
Quincy and Sterigenics define this governor. This is heartbreaking got those who should have been protected.

Comment by Barrington Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 9:58 am
For not got

Comment by Barrington Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:00 am
It is one thing to be understaffed or incompetent it is quite another to hid things. If someone actively hid things they should face criminal charges

Comment by DuPage Saint Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:01 am
IEPA had empty office space in the Thompson Center after Rauner arrived.

Comment by Keyrock Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:11 am
==It is one thing to be understaffed or incompetent it is quite another to hid things. If someone actively hid things they should face criminal charges==
Intentional indifference is pushing the envelope of “one thing”. Agency heads and policymakers just look the other way. The Sgt. Schultz defense, just for you.

Comment by Capitalism Nightmare Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:11 am
Wow. You have a plant causing cancer in the communities surrounding the plant, but God forbid you spend the money to hire an expert to stop it. That would be too expensive.

Comment by Fourier Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:12 am
I am still waiting to read what the Illinois State Cancer Registry (ISCR) says about this cancer cluster, as if I’m not mistaken, they are mandated to collect diagnoses for incidence and mortality, so they actually had all the data first and then its turned over to the Fed’s.

ISCR is a program within the Illinois Department of Public Health and routinely performs these types of data analyses

Comment by LINK Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:13 am
My wife and hundreds of other IEPA employees are left and “retired” BECAUSE of the gutting of the agency by Rauner beginning with the appt of Lisa Bonet. She did exactly what Rauner wanted and the same can be said about her replacement Alec Messina. The brain drain will take decade, if not more to fix. Now crap hits the fan. This was the intention

Comment by truthteller Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:14 am
–the IEPA revealed it had nobody on staff to handle the case.–

Mismanagement by design.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:14 am
=IEPA had empty office space in the Thompson Center after Rauner arrived.=

Agree that Quinn and Blago did some of the same - but doesn’t justify Rauner making it worse, that’s a Trumpian argument that “We have to completely destroy our credibility to save it.”
With the exception of the ICC, Quinn took a pretty good run at kneecapping other safety and health regulatory functions.

Comment by Duopoly Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:18 am
With Rauner, who never before managed, it was never about management, so you get Quincy and Willowbrook and massive turnover in the Governor’s office. It’s was about the immediate southernization of Illinois–increasing business profits and decreasing worker’s wages and benefits, through legislation–and the constant, loud, public denunciation of rivals whose cooperation he needed.

Comment by James Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:39 am
People - have you all forgotten the Guv’s credo?

We have to be competitive before we can be compassionate.

Comment by Henry Francis Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:48 am
Just a few years ago, IEPA had a toxicology assessment unit with 4-5 employees, including one employee who was a nationally-recognized toxicologist. Most have retired or moved on, and weren’t replaced. IEPA could have still worked with the AG’s office to contract with an outside expert to review the Sterigenics air toxics study and make recommendations for follow-up action.

Comment by Going nuclear Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 10:53 am
Questionable reporting to say “causing a cancer cluster.” There is no causation that has been established, there is correlation between two variables. This drives me crazy with reporting. And just to be clear I am not saying there isn’t reason to be concerned but it would be nice if reporters made statements that tied to reality and not just possibility.

Comment by NeverPoliticallyCorrect Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 11:21 am
==You have a plant causing cancer in the communities surrounding the plant, but God forbid you spend the money to hire an expert to stop it. That would be too expensive.==

Like any savvy businessman, Governor Rauner did a thorough cost/benefit analysis. He found that the cost wouldn’t benefit him.

Comment by Roadrager Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 11:33 am
The IEPA director was a Democrat back in the day. Seems he switched sides. Oops. Anyway, Pritzker will clean it up

Comment by tangled web Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 11:39 am
There would have been ten experts if Pritzger owned Sterigenics.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 11:59 am
=The IEPA director was a Democrat back in the day. Seems he switched sides. Oops. Anyway, Pritzker will clean it up=

IEPA was an RRB democrat, RRB was a self-proclaimed “Regan democrat”.
What a tangled landfill….
Maybe JB can bring “Uncle Dick” Mell to tell us what’s going on?

Comment by Duopoly Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 12:04 pm
Lock him up.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 12:49 pm
Sterigenics never went above EPA regulations, did they? Eto is manufactured naturally by humans, did you know that? So, how much EtO gas is manufactured by a human? Did Sterigenics ever go over that amount? This should all be based on science, not politics. And lets get a newspaper that will actually state the FACTS instead of freaking out residents. “We still do not have an expert from IEPA who can testify in court and prove that Sterigenics should be immediately shut down.” Maybe that actually means that there are IEPA experts, but those experts won’t say in court that Sterigenics did anything wrong and won’t say that Sterigenics should be shut down.

Comment by Science lover Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 12:55 pm
=There is no causation that has been established, there is correlation between two variables. This drives me crazy with reporting.=

Go look at the EPA map super genius. It drives me crazy when the lap dogs a bots act as if everyone is a dumb as they would like us to be.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 1:17 pm
Duopoly- it went back further than RBB.

But in any event- I dont think he’ll he welcomed back.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 2:08 pm
Not to worry lawsuit already filed by Attorney General’s office today
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-lisa-madigan-dupage-sterigenics-lawsuit-20181029-story.html

Comment by Kat Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 2:29 pm
Just heard from former colleague that tomorrow is the last day for IEPA’s Bureau of Air Chief - Julie Armitage.

Comment by Former IEPA Tuesday, Oct 30, 18 @ 3:01 pm
In reply to JS Mill, calling people names does not help. The EPA map you refer to is not evidence of a cancer cluster. It is a map of cancer risk. And as much as you dislike NeverPoliticallyCorrect’s post, it is correct. Risk does not equal outcome.

Comment by Dan Wednesday, Oct 31, 18 @ 9:26 am