Environmental Programs
Our Environmental Health Programs include but are not limited to:
Food Service establishment: Consultation, Education, Inspection
Inspections, Consultations, Code Enforcement
Food borne Illness Investigation
Water
New well permit applications and new well inspections, sealing well inspections, consultations, code enforcement.
Follow this link to the IL Department of Public Health to review information regarding food and water borne illness.
Septic Systems:
Consultations, Education, Inspection, Code enforcement, New private sewage disposal, permit applications.
Commercial Tanning Booth and Body Art establishment
The goal of the Tanning Inspection Program is to protect citizens from overexposure to ultraviolet radiation, which can cause skin irritation, burns, eye damage and forms of cancer.
The program consists of initial and renewal inspections, and also complaint investigations.
Tanning facility licenses are issued by Illinois Department of Public Health. Please contact our department for a permit application form and informational packet.
The goal of the Body Art Program is to prevent the occurrence of injury, infection and disease transmission as a result of improper body art procedures.
Nuisance Ordinance Investigation and Enforcement
Vector Control Surveillance including birds, ticks and mosquitos
Our department focuses its environmental monitoring on three primary areas where vector-borne illnesses typically circulate.
1. Mosquito Monitoring & Control
Mosquitoes are the primary vectors for viruses like West Nile, Zika, and Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE).
Trapping & Testing: We deploy specialized surveillance traps weekly across the county to collect mosquito pools. These samples are tested in our lab for active viral strains.
Larval Control: When high-risk breeding sites are identified, we apply eco-friendly larvicides to stagnant water to stop mosquitoes before they can fly and bite.
2. Tick Identification & Mapping
Ticks are notorious for spreading Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Anaplasmosis.
Tick Dragging: Our environmental specialists use fabric drags in high-risk wooded and grassy areas to collect and catalog local tick populations.
Species Tracking: Monitoring which species are expanding their geographic range helps us alert medical providers about localized disease risks.
3. Avian (Bird) Surveillance
Certain bird species—particularly crows, jays, and robins—act as natural amplifying hosts for West Nile Virus. When a mosquito bites an infected bird, it can later pass that virus to a human.
Early Warning System: Tracking and testing recently deceased birds acts as an "early warning system" for our community, letting us know a virus is active in the area before human cases begin to appear.
How Residents Can Help
Public health is a team effort. You can play a direct role in our vector surveillance and prevention program by taking a few simple steps.
Report dead birds
If you find a recently deceased crow, blue jay, or raven on your property that shows no obvious signs of injury, report it. Do not touch the bird with bare hands.
Drain standing water: Weekly
Mosquitoes need less than a bottle cap of water to breed. Tip over flower pots, clear clogged rain gutters, refresh birdbaths twice a week, and keep swimming pools properly treated
Please contact the CCHD within 24 hours if you feel like you have come in contact with a food or water borne bacteria.
