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Carl updates Council on city’s ongoing lead abatement efforts

Galesburg Director of Planning and Public Works Wayne Carl gave City Council members some news regarding the ongoing quest to free local homes of lead hazards.Carl says that the city has submitted an application to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for Phase 3 of the Lead Line Service Replacement Project.

He says the IEPA has indicated their willingness to approve another $2 million forgivable loan for the city, which would fund another 500 replacements at homes.

Phase I funded about 400 replacements and Phase II is slated for 500 to be replaced, with the contractor already haven completed 300.

The IEPA has also signaled they were interested in funding the city program past Phase 3, until “hopefully all the lines in town are replaced, according to Carl.

The city is also cooperating in a state run study with the University of Chicago in which 21 local homes will undergo lead remediation, with before-and-after blood lead level tests.

“The idea is to try and determine where is money best spent in order to try to lower blood lead levels in Knox County,” Carl says.

The city has also applied for a $4 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to abate lead paint on the outside of around 200 homes.

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