S.H. Bell Chicago Facility

Air Monitoring

U.S. EPA staff continues to inspect S.H. Bell’s Chicago facility to confirm the company is complying with federal and state regulations. S.H. Bell is operating and maintaining air monitors at the facility. EPA reviews and publishes the results of the monitoring each month. (For the latest data, see S.H. Bell Chicago Air Monitoring Data.) Since EPA issued the S.H. Bell Chicago Notice of Violation - August 2017 (pdf) (648 K) (About pdf)  and engaged in settlement negotiations with S.H. Bell, the average manganese concentration between September 2017 through July 2018 (11 months) is 0.089 µg/m3. That is below the minimal risk level for chronic inhalation exposure to manganese, which is 0.3 μg/m3.

Southeast Side Site near the S.H. Bell Property

U.S. EPA oversaw the cleanup of manganese-contaminated soil in seven residential properties and one right-of-way in Chicago’s Southeast Side site near the S.H. Bell facility. All field work was completed in November 2020.

The agency had conducted residential soil sampling in the summer and fall of 2018 in response to a request from the City of Chicago received in April 2018. Earlier that year, the City of Chicago Department of Public Health had collected limited soil samples in right-of-way areas near the S.H. Bell facility, and some sample results indicated elevated manganese levels.

Validated data results from EPA’s 2018 soil sampling study for the Southeast Side Site

For more information about manganese and lead, see Advice for Residents. 

Agency Response

U.S. EPA has been studying air in Chicago’s East side since 2013 in response to residents’ concerns about the area’s long industrial history. The agency has inspected the S.H. Bell Company facility, which is located in the neighborhood, several times since 2014. As a result, the company has installed a particulate matter ambient air monitoring network on site. S. H. Bell Company handles, stores and processes industrial materials, including metals. EPA is committed to investigating sources of pollution, fugitive dust, and toxic metals in Southeast Chicago, including conducting inspections, issuing Section 114 Information Requests, and taking appropriate enforcement action. (Learn about EPA enforcement in The Clean Air Act in a Nutshell: How It Works (pdf) (250 K) 

Site Community Involvement Plan (pdf) (8.71 MB)

Advice for Residents

• Information on manganese from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
• Información sobre el manganeso de la Agencia para Sustancias Tóxicas y el Registro de Enfermedades
• Learn about Lead
• Información sobre el plomo
• Growing Gardens in Urban Soils
• Cultivando Huertos en Suelos Urbanos(5.6MB)

Documents

• Southeast Side Site near the S.H. Bell Property
• Administrative Record

News Releases

• EPA to Begin Targeted Assessment of Manganese in Soil Near S.H. Bell Facility in Chicago (March 9, 2018)
• EPA Cites S.H. Bell for Manganese Air Pollution in Chicago (August 7, 2017)

Air related documents and reports

• S.H. Bell Section 114 Information Request (pdf) (803.72 KB, February 2018)
• Bilingual Case Status Fact Sheet - English/Spanish
  • SH Bell Community Follow-up Fact Sheet English (pdf) (52.33 KB, September 27, 2017)
  • SH Bell Community Follow-up Fact Sheet Spanish (pdf) (160.03 KB, September 27, 2017)
• S.H. Bell Chicago Air Monitoring Data
• S.H. Bell Chicago Inspection Reports and Photos
  • EPA Region 5 has conducted several inspections at the S.H. Bell Company's Chicago facility from 2014 through 2017. EPA has also taken photos in the surrounding neighborhood. All inspection reports and images are being provided to the public.
    • Inspection Report, S.H. Bell Company, Chicago, Illinois - April 25, 2014 (pdf) (1.27 MB)
    • Southeast Chicago Tour Photo Collection - April 2014 (pdf) (5.2 MB)
    • Inspection Report, S.H. Bell Company, Chicago, Illinois - May 19, 2014 (pdf) (1.7 MB)
    • Inspection Report, S.H. Bell Company, Chicago, Illinois - May 20, 2014 (pdf) (3.17 MB)
    • Inspection Report, S.H. Bell Company, Chicago, Illinois - Dec. 8, 2015 (pdf) (70.05 KB)
    • S.H. Bell Monitor Siting Evaluation Photo Log - March 1, 2017 (pdf) (435.41 KB)
    • S.H. Bell Monitor Siting Evaluation Photo Log - March 21, 2017 (pdf) (724.76 KB)
    • S.H. Bell Inspection July 6, 2022 (pdf) (1.93 MB)

• On Aug. 7, 2017, EPA issued this Notice of Violation under Section 113(a)(l) of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7413(a)(l). EPA found that S.H. Bell Company was violating the Illinois State Implementation Plan at its Chicago facility.

  EPA determined that manganese emissions exceed the health-based screening level at the S.H. Bell facility, 10218 South Avenue O, Chicago. Four months of air monitoring data from the S.H. Bell facility for March 1, 2017, through June 30, 2017, show an average concentration of 0.32 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3) of manganese. The minimal risk level for chronic inhalation exposure to manganese is 0.3 µg/m³. The company submitted the data to EPA on August 1.

  • S.H. Bell Chicago Notice of Violation - August 2017 (pdf) (632.86 KB, Aug. 7, 2017)

• A civil complaint was filed by the United States against S.H. Bell Company for violations of the Clean Air Act on August 9, 2016. S.H. Bell refused to install air pollution monitors at its bulk solid materials handling facility in southeast Chicago. S.H. Bell does not handle petroleum coke; however S.H. Bell handles and stores many different types of materials, some in large outdoor storage piles.

  EPA inspectors found that the storage and processing of bulk solid materials at S.H. Bell created particulate matter pollution that affected the surrounding community. EPA requested air pollution monitors to determine whether S.H. Bell is emitting particulate matter pollution at levels that violate the requirements of the CAA.

  • S.H. Bell Complaint (pdf) (53.41 KB, Aug. 9, 2016)
  • S.H. Bell Company Stipulated Settlement and Final Consent Order (pdf) (5.6 MB, December 8, 2016)
• SH Bell Site Boundary Map (pdf) (4.33 MB)
• S.H. Bell Company Stipulated Settlement and Final Consent Order (pdf) (5.6 MB, August 2016)
• S.H. Bell Section 114 Information Request (pdf) (361.03 KB, March 2015)
• S.H. Bell Notice of Violation (pdf) (133.84 KB, July 2014)