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Homer Glen schedules workshop after residents raise alarm over BP pipeline tree clearing
Summary
Residents told the Village Board that BP intends to clear a wide swath of trees along a decades-old pipeline; trustees asked BP for a tree survey, wetland delineation and a work plan and scheduled an environment-committee workshop for Oct. 1 to press for answers.
Trustees in Homer Glen set a public workshop for Oct. 1 after residents and trustees raised concerns about a planned British Petroleum (BP) right-of-way maintenance effort that could remove large, longstanding trees along a pipeline corridor.
Residents said BP has notified them about work that would clear a swath of vegetation and that prior clear-cutting in 2007–08 removed hundreds of trees. At the meeting on Sept. 25, resident Joe Therese urged trustees to preserve the trees, saying, "Some of these trees have been dated to be over 300 years old," and called them the community's heritage. Other residents, and several trustees, pressed for documentation and safeguards before any clearing proceeds.
Trustee Councilino said staff is compiling questions and invited residents to an environment-committee workshop on Tuesday, October 1 at 05:30PM to present findings and ask BP to respond. "If there's specific questions that residents have, I would like to ask that you submit them to the village," she said, requesting BP be present if possible.
Technical comments from residents and local engineers focused on wetlands, floodplain impacts and permitting. Dave Buckley, who said he has experience in water resources, recommended requiring BP to provide a tree-preservation work plan and a wetland/floodplain delineation so the village can assess erosion and hydrology risks. He added the village could use its Lowland Conservancy overlay and related ordinances to require permits and a survey of tree impacts.
Resident and mechanical engineer Mike McGee recalled a 2007–08 episode when BP's contractor cleared many trees without prior notice. "BP continues to return to our beautiful neighborhood," McGee said, describing residents' concerns about erosion near Long Run Creek and the loss of canopy.
Village staff said BP has not yet pulled a village permit for clearing; staff and trustees noted that pipeline maintenance is often regulated at the federal level (DOT/PHMSA) but said local approvals, tree surveys and coordination can be requested. Village engineer Brett Westcott told the board BP was not expected to proceed without the village's concurrence and that the village could ask BP to provide a work plan, tree survey and an on‑the‑ground explanation of their proposed methods.
The board agreed to collect written questions from trustees and residents, provide them to staff and request BP attendance at the Oct. 1 workshop. Trustees also discussed assembling a small subcommittee or task group, and multiple residents offered to support a fact-finding effort and to supply historical records from the 2007–08 interactions with BP.
Next steps: the village will host an environment-committee workshop on Tuesday, Oct. 1 at 05:30PM to review BP's proposals (if BP attends) and to present staff analysis including wetland delineation, tree inventory and any legal constraints. The board asked staff to pursue historical records and to prepare a joint list of questions for BP in advance of the meeting.
