At the Metcalfe Federal Building, the unwanted medicines collection continues under the supervision of two plainclothes Chicago police officers. (Photo courtesy EPA Flow of the River Blog)
EPA Regional Administrator Mary A. Gade encourages public to participate in EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge; lauds the wonder of the Great Lakes and reminds audience how much progress has been made since Earth Day started nearly 40 years ago
Speaking during Earth Day 2008 ceremonies at Daley Plaza in Chicago on April 21, 2008 is Mary A. Gade, the EPA Region 5 Administrator and the Great Lakes National Program Manager. The Regional Administrator reports directly to the EPA Administrator in Washington, D.C. (Photo courtesy EPA Flow of the River Blog)
(Chicago, Illinois) - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Mary A. Gade celebrated Earth Day 2008 with crowds gathered at Daley Plaza in Chicago.
Gade encouraged everyone to participate in the EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge that runs through the end of April.
While some events were held last weekend, many of the challenge electronic and pharmaceutical collections are this Saturday, April 26 across eight states.
During the event, Gade and other EPA officials dropped their unwanted medications into a collection barrel.
The unwanted meds collection in the EPA building filled almost the whole barrel. Looking pleased (below) are Vicki Thomas (Great Lakes Program), Region 5 Administrator Mary Gade, and Great Lakes National Program Office Director Gary Gulezian. (Photo courtesy EPA Flow of the River Blog)
With grant money from US EPA, the City of Chicago has purchased pharmaceutical collection boxes (above) like this one. (Photo courtesy EPA Flow of the River Blog)
Photo by treehugger.com
Gade noted how far the fight to protect the environment in America has come over the past 40 years - reminding Chicago residents there was a time when it was necessary to turn on their car headlights to navigate through steel mill pollution that hung thickly in the air on the south side of Lake Michigan.
Cuyahoga River fire: On June 22, 1969, industrial pollutants on the Cuyahoga River caught fire in Cleveland, Ohio, drawing national attention to environmental problems in Ohio and elsewhere in the United States. It was the latest in a series of fires on the river beginning in mid 1800s. Fires occurred on the Cuyahoga River in 1868, 1883, 1887, 1912, 1922, 1936, 1941, 1948, and in 1952. The 1952 fire caused over 1.5 million dollars in damage.
Gade reminded those gathered of the times when American rivers caught fire from industrial pollution in big cities like the infamous blazes on the Cuyahoga River in Ohio.
Gade thanked the city of Chicago, the Chicago Police Department, the U.S. General Services Administration, the U.S. Post Office, the state of Illinois, the Illinois EPA and many others for working with the USEPA to make the challenge possible and for helping to ensure the busy collection sites operate without a problem.
The city of Chicago has another pharmaceutical collection scheduled this Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 pm on Goose Island at the Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility, 1150 N. North Branch St.(Goose Island), Chicago.
In addition to serving as EPA Region 5 Administrator, Gade is the EPA Great Lakes National Program Manager.
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Related Links:
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Flow of the River EPA Blog on Chicago Earth Day event:
http://flowoftheriver.epa.gov/greatlakeschallenge/2008/04/earth-day-in-re.html
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ABC 7 News Chicago:
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=6093572
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Medil Reports video Earth Day message In Chicago: Making small changes in your daily routine can lead to big changes in the environment
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=86655
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Earth911 Story on EPA Great Lakes 2008 Earth Day Challenge:
http://earth911.org/blog/2008/03/14/epas-great-lakes-2008-earth-day-challenge-a-prescription-for-healthy-great-lakes/
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EPA Region 5 Office in Chicago, Illinois
Mary A. Gade, Regional Administrator, Great Lakes National Program Manager
The Regional Administrator reports directly to the EPA Administrator at EPA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
312-886-3000
gade.mary@epa.gov
http://www.epa.gov/region5
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The interfaith Earth Healing Initiative:
http://www.earthhealinginitiative.org
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Cuyahoga River fires:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuyahoga_River
http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/events/earthday/welcome.html
http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=1642
Photos of numerous fires on Cuyahoga River:
http://web.ulib.csuohio.edu/SpecColl/croe/accfire.html
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Lake Michigan south shore steel mills pollution in 1970s caused car headlights to be needed in South Chicago, East Chicago, and Gary:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/10/us_steel_joins.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Michigan
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/ecbig/landscap.htm
http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/638.html
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EPA Press Release:
Ask Not What the Environment Can Do For You this Earth Day
http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/dc57b08b5acd42bc852573c90044a9c4/bb279434e6f40c6e8525743200582794!OpenDocument
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USA Today story on Lake Superior Climate Change:
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/globalwarming/2008-04-21-climatechange_N.htm
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Illinois EPA website:
http://www.epa.state.il.us
Ill EPA Spring HHW collections:
http://www.epa.state.il.us/land/hazardous-waste/household-haz-waste/hhwc-schedule.html
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Alliance for the Great Lakes
http://www.greatlakes.org
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Two Chicago area Earth Day 2008 related events:
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Event #1 was held on April 19, 2008 in Cook County and involved the collection of HHW and Unwanted Medications at the DeVry Technical Institute, 3300 North Campbell in Chicago, Illinois
For more information on event #1 in Chicago contact: Illinois EPA David Walters
217-785-8604
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Event #2
April 26, 2008
City of Chicago
Unwanted Medications
8 to 3 pm
Chicago Household Hazardous Waste facility on Goose Island
Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility
1150 N. North Branch on Goose Island
Chicago, Ill
60622
Contact:
312-744-7672
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Lyman Welch, Alliance for the Great Lakes water quality manager
312-939-0838 ext. 230
This event is being sponsored by the Alliance, IEPA, EPA and the City of
Chicago. At the event, anyone can bring (at no charge) unused or expired
prescription and non-prescription drugs including inhalers and mercury
thermometers for collection for proper disposal.
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Project sites include locations in eight states:
Illinois:
Alton, Beecher, Bellwood, Bolingbrook, Carol Stream, Channahon, Chicago, Elk Grove Village, Elmhurst, Glenview, Joliet, Lockport, Lombard, Mount Prospect, Northbrook, Park Ridge, Romeoville, Shorewood, Villa Park, West Chicago, Wheaton, Woodstock
Indiana:
Columbia City, Hammond, Knox, LaPorte, Fort Wayne, Rushville, Valparaiso
Michigan:
Bay City (two events), Benton Harbor, Bloomfield Hills, Dearborn Heights, East Lansing, Farmington Hills, Goodells, Grand Rapids (two events) Harbor Springs, Lansing, Midland, Monroe, Royal Oaks, Sault Ste. Marie, Southfield, Traverse City
Minnesota:
Blaine, Brooklyn Park, Duluth, Eagan, Eden Prairie, Madison, Maple Grove, New Ulm, Saint Cloud, Shakopee, St. Louis Park, St. Paul
New York:
Brockport, Buffalo, Fredonia, Rochester (two events), Syracuse (two events).
Ohio:
Cleveland, Grove City, Kent, Perrysburg, Sandusky, Springfield, Toledo, Warren
Pennsylvania:
Erie, Lancaster
Wisconsin:
Appleton, Brillion, Chilton, Crandon, Green Bay, Keshena (Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and College of Menominee Nation), Manitowoc, Milwaukee, New Holstein, Oshkosh, Plover (two events), Racine, Superior, Waupaca.
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