Next up on its roster of unexpected urban tours, the Southeast Environmental Task Force will lead brave participants where they likely haven't ventured before: the area's trash dumps and waste facilities. Intrigued tourists have already snatched up all the seats on the $35 Saturday excursion that will visit facilities on the city's South Side and along the Calumet River in a coach bus, so if you were planning to tag along, tough break—though, to be fair, your nose probably thanks you.
The event in and of itself is noteworthy. Described by Chicagoist as "highlighting some of the ugly ways that 'the City that works' really works," the tour, which departs from the Chicago Cultural Center, brings some rare attention to an often-overlooked side of the city, though judging by last year's brouhaha between South Side environmentalists and community groups, city officials, and a landfill company, the subject is one about which many residents, particularly those who live by one of the area's waste collection sites, are passionate.
Even if you missed this one, the Task Force, one of twelve groups to receive funding last year from the state's Millennium Reserve Plan, puts on a lot of these off-the-beaten-path events. The next tour open to the general public, according to the group's website, will explore Chicago's ties with the Industrial Revolution September 21.
·South Side Trash Tour [Chicagoist]
·Southeast Environmental Task Force [Official Site]
·Where Does Our Garbage Go? [WBEZ, photo: WBEZ]
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