Educate Yourself:
The Confined Disposal Facility is a dump that juts out into Lake Michigan between two well-used birding locations, Steelworkers’ and Calumet Parks in Chicago.
Our partners Environmental Law and Policy Center are suing on behalf of Friends of the Parks and Alliance of the Southeast to ensure that the Army Corps does not build a 25-foot tall dump at the site, which is slated to be turned over the the Chicago Park District. Park 566 and Steelworkers’ Park show what amazing bird habitat this site could be. The back end of Park 566 is not owned by the Park district, and all that lovely bird habitat is slated to be developed. The Confined Disposal Facility site could be a great replacement.
Other partners in this action are Chicago Ornithological Society, Ancona School, Feminist Bird Club, Fort Dearborn Audubon Society, and the Bird Conservation Network. We hope to add to this list.
Take Action!
Please join us on Saturday, November 11 at 9:30 to show the birding community’s support for the lawsuit demands: to stop the expansion of the dump and to call for its sealing and decommissioning.
We believe that the entire lakefront should be parkland for the use of Chicagoans.
We believe that this parcel which is located at the confluence of Lake Michigan and the Calumet River should be a treasured spot mainly dedicated to the enjoyment of nature.
We do not think it is fair to continue to consider only sites in the 10th Ward for these toxic dredge spoils. We encourage the new dump to be housed in a community that is not an EJ (Environmental Justice) community. Read more about cumulative impact here.
All are welcome to the event. We’ll do a little birding at 9:30 and viewing of the CDF facility from across the river. - this is a good time of year to see ducks and native sparrows, plus November is “rarity month” so who knows what we will find! At 10:00 we’ll have a brief rally, and the event will end by 10:30. Press will be invited. Please register so we can buy you a warm drink! If you haven’t registered, you can still come by - the more the merrier
Please come out and bring your friends to show support for lakefront parks, bird habitat and Environmental Justice. We’ll have some warm drinks, some postcards you can send the Mayor, and some very brief but rousing talks to fight the cold! Speakers will include neighbors, birders and a local politician. Learn and support this important issue for Chicago’s birds.
From Alliance of the Southeast
Want more info? Check these resources:
· CST Editorial Board. "Don’t keep dumping toxic muck in what should be a Southeast Side park." Chicago Sun-Times. 03-14-2023. https://chicago.suntimes.com/2023/3/14/23640032/calumet-river-lake-michigan-army-corps-engineers-southeast-side-park-10th-ward-editorial
· Atkins, Karina. "Southeast Side residents fight shoreline dump as mayoral candidates vow to take on pollution." Chicago Tribune. 03-31-2023. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/environment/ct-southeast-side-mayor-environment-20230331-bzywi3bglrcwddl3qqgrucudxq-story.html
· Vargas, Carmen. "Comunidad en el sureste de Chicago lucha para evitar la ampliación de un terreno de desechos: temen por su salud." Univision. 05-24-2023. https://www.univision.com/local/chicago-wgbo/comunidad-en-el-sureste-de-chicago-lucha-para-evitar-la-ampliacion-de-un-terreno-de-desechos-temen-por-su-salud-video
Environmental Law and Policy Center The Army Corps’ environmental impact statement process only looked at alternative sites in the 10thWard on the Southeast Side. Put another way, the Army Corps did not “rigorously explore and objectively evaluate all reasonable alternatives” (per NEPA’s requirements) of any alternative sites outside of the EJ community in the 10th Ward on the Southeast Side. Apart from the legal violations raised in the federal court lawsuit, the Army Corps’ failure to examine non-10th Ward alternatives is unduly constrained, reflects yesterday’s thinking to today’s environmental problems, is insensitive to environmental justice values, and reflects a lack of innovation and creative problem-solving.
https://elpc.org/blog/federal-lawsuit-filed-to-stop-dredge-dump-on-chicagos-southeast-side-lakefront/