General Iron is a notorious and corrupt polluter. 

A bad neighbor, it doesn’t follow federal, state or local regulations.

What it does:

General Iron and its parent company RMG shred scrap metal from the suburbs, currently along the North Branch of the Chicago River. Neighbors have battled the company for years for spewing toxic auto fluff (similar to insulation), generating nauseous odors, creating loud noises and endangering neighbors. Simply put: It’s not a good neighbor.

Its record:

Horrible: Multiple fires, explosions and numerous OSHA violations. Even the Trump Administration’s U.S. EPA forced the polluter into a consent decree.

Its web of corruption:

What it’s pollution looks like:

The names it goes by:

Many have falsely claimed that General Iron is not moving to the Southeast Side and it is just an “asset sale.” 

General Iron was purchased in 2019 by RMG and now acts as its parent company. It calls the Southeast operation “Southside Recycling” to make it appear it is a completely new operation, but that’s not true. Here’s why:

The same people running the Northside operation will be involved in the Southeast location. Steven Joseph, the President of General Iron, is the manager of the General Iron and RMG. Adam Labkon testified before the zoning committee that he will run the operations on the southeast side. 

The company name might be different, but the same people that owned General Iron will own RMG. The longtime owners of General Iron, the Labkon family, own 33 percent of the South Side shredder with RMG. 

The same problematic equipment, which is supposed to prevent pollution, from the Northside is moving to the Southeast side. That equipment has had multiple explosions and fires, including one in late 2020. Based on the information submitted by General Iron, the Illinois EPA’s permit allows General Iron to emit 16 TONS of toxic particulate matter pollution toward students at George Washington Elementary and High School.