New Health Consultation Released for Manners Park in Taylorville

New Health Consultation Released for Manners Park in Taylorville

30-day public comment period underway, community event planned

SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has announced the release of a new health consultation which evaluates soil contamination at Manners Park in Taylorville in Christian County, Illinois. The park is directly east of the Ameren CIPS Superfund site. The release of the report marks the beginning of a 30-day public comment period about the information contained in the report.

The report was requested by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) and prepared in collaboration with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). It evaluates potential exposures to the metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in soil at the park.

A manufactured gas plant operated at the Ameren CIPS Superfund site from 1892 to 1932, which contaminated soil and groundwater in the Site area with PAHs. Known contamination at the Site drove community concerns about possible soil contamination at nearby Manners Park.

IDPH's key findings include:

• Concentrated areas of high metals were found at Manners Park Field 1 and near the park's dining hall during environmental investigations. While the source of the metals detected in park soil is unknown, the presence of metals is not believed to be related to the Ameren CIPS site, because such metals were not among the contaminants at the site.
• Exposure to lead in soil at Manners Park Field 1 may have impacted the blood lead level of past summer league baseball players prior to 2023. A higher amount of lead in the blood can increase the risk for adverse health effects.
• PAHs in park soil were found to be near or below levels that would typically be expected in a community like Taylorville. This indicates the soil at the park was unlikely to have been impacted by a source of high PAHs, like coal tar.
• Exposure to metals and PAHs in the soil throughout the rest of Manners Park does not pose a health risk to people using the park for recreational purposes.
• All park baseball fields other than Field 1 can resume normal use.

IDPH recommends that people visiting the park avoid accessing fenced-off areas, as this is where elevated levels of lead have been found. People can visit the park without taking any other precautions. IDPH encourages the Taylorville Park District to ensure that fence and gate locks placed at Field 1 and snow fencing near the park's Dining Hall are properly maintained and in good working order. Additionally, IDPH recommends that the Taylorville Park District conduct additional testing of soil at and near Field 1 for further analysis of the potential lead levels in the soil there. IDPH will review future available sampling data and prepare an additional report if necessary.

A 30-day public comment period is now open, running until October 1, 2026. During this time, members of the public can submit comments or questions related to the health consultation. IDPH will respond to all comments in an updated version of the report; commenters' names will not be included. Comments may be submitted to [email protected].

Additionally, IDPH will host a public open house on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, from 4:30 to 6:30pm at the University of Illinois Extension Service office, 1120 N. Webster Street, Taylorville. During this informal gathering, the public will be able to speak with IDPH environmental health staffers and ask questions about the site.

A fact sheet summarizing the findings of the public health assessment can be found here. Additional information can also be found at Public Health Assessments and Health Consultations.