Proposed Plan Public Comment Period January 30, 2023 - February 28, 2023
A 30-day Public Comment period has been established for the public to provide comments on a Proposed Plan prepared for Former Building 922 Oil/Water (OWS) Separator, Site SD027, located at the former Chanute AFB. This document recommends interim Land Use Controls (LUCs), restricting the use of groundwater at Site SD027 based on previous investigations.  Hard copies of the Proposed Plan may be viewed in the Information Repository at the Rantoul Public Library, 106 West Flessner Avenue, Rantoul, Illinois 61866, as well as at the Rantoul Village Hall, 333 South Tanner Street, Rantoul, Illinois 61866. The Proposed Plan is available in the Quick Links column on this page or by clicking here.  Additionally, supporting documents can be accessed online at https://ar.afcec-cloud.af.mil/. Written comments, as well as requests for a Public Meeting to provide input on the Proposed Plan, can be addressed to: Mr. Paul Carroll, AFCEC/CIBC, 9801 Reese Boulevard North, Suite 210, Lubbock, Texas 79416-2017, email: paul.carroll.1@us.af.mil

History
Chanute Air Force Base, Illinois, was established in 1917 as Chanute Field, making it one of the oldest Air Force facilities prior to its closure in 1993. Chanute began as a pilot training school during World War I, and after a brief closure following the end of the war, reopened as a technical training center. Chanute AFB was recommended for closure by the U.S. Department of Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 1988. The base was officially closed Sept. 30, 1993. 

Environmental Activities
AFCEC continues to work closely with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to ensure environmental cleanup activities satisfy all regulatory standards and protect human health and the environment. The Air Force has invested more than $188 million on cleanup actions at the former installation.

Airmen at Chanute used hazardous materials such as aviation and motor fuels, petroleum products such as motor oil, lubricants and hydraulic fluids, and cleaning solvents when the base was open. Hazardous wastes generated at Chanute AFB included waste oils and fuels, oil/water separator sludge, solvent residues and other chemical wastes. When the base closed, the Air Force collected hazardous wastes from all storage and designated accumulation points and disposed of them off-site at a permitted facility. Primary sources of hazardous substances involved either oil-water separators, underground storage tanks, sludge pits (or a combination of these items) and landfills.

AFCEC is required to investigate and clean up past releases of contamination that may pose unacceptable risks to human health and the environment. AFCEC implements these requirements under their Installation Restoration Program as well as state regulatory programs such as the Illinois Underground Storage Tank and Leaking UST programs.

Property Transfer
Today, the Village of Rantoul has attracted tenants in the fields of transportation and education, including Lincoln’s ChalleNGe, an intensive, highly structured, alternative educational environment run by the Illinois National Guard and designed to give at-risk youth a new start at becoming contributing members of their community. The former base is also home to the University of Illinois Advanced Transportation and Research Engineering Laboratory, or ATREL, one of the leading transportation research facilities in the nation.

As of July 2022, 2199 acres have transferred and 1 acre remains.