Illinois EPA To Begin Testing More Than 1,700 Community Water Supplies For PFAS
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced this week that it will begin testing all community water supplies in the state for polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS—harmful chemicals found in firefighting foam, food packaging and household products that can leak into drinking water. This is the Illinois EPA’s first widespread sampling effort to monitor PFAS in […]
University Of Illinois Proposes Micronuclear Reactor To Cut Carbon Emissions
URBANA — University of Illinois researchers have proposed investing in a micronuclear reactor to help fight carbon emissions—and reach a goal of making the Urbana-Champaign campus carbon neutral by 2050. The proposed micronuclear reactor would contribute about 13% of campus energy and help reduce the university’s carbon footprint. The proposal is being submitted to the […]
Court Battles Over Dakota Access Pipeline Continue In Illinois
PATOKA – This summer, a district court ruled the Dakota Access Pipeline had to be shut down until a more thorough environmental review was done. That ruling was recently overturned, with the pipeline allowed to operate indefinitely. But multiple court battles continue. Reporter Lecia Bushak traveled to south-central Illinois to look into one of the […]
Environmental Groups Push To Strengthen Illinois EPA’s Proposed Coal Ash Rules
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois EPA (IEPA) testified last week in defense of proposed coal ash rules before the Illinois Pollution Control Board and the public. The rules would specify how the agency cleans up sites under the Coal Ash Pollution Prevention Act passed last year. That includes the cleanup and closure of coal combustion residual […]
University Of Illinois Begins Construction On Second Solar Farm As Part Of Renewable Energy Plan
The University of Illinois has begun construction on its second solar farm, as part of its long-term plan to expand renewable energy and become carbon-neutral by 2050. The new solar farm will provide 20,000 megawatt hours per year to the U of I campus—the equivalent to powering around 2,000 average homes. The project follows the […]
Conservationists Start Project Restoring Some Of Central Illinois’ Native Prairie
DECATUR – Workers cut down a large tree at Rock Springs Conservation Area in southwest Decatur. They’re clearing invasive tree species to make way for re-seeding something that is now rare in Illinois—native tallgrass prairie. Less than one-tenth of 1% of Illinois’ native prairie still exists. According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois […]
Nitrate Pollution In Illinois Drinking Water Increasing, New Report Finds
CHAMPAIGN – Nitrate levels in Illinois drinking water continue to be an environmental health issue and in some areas are increasing, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG). The analysis gathered data on 10 largely agricultural states—including Illinois, Kansas and California—and found that many small, rural water systems have potentially unsafe […]
Illinois Officials To Begin Treating For Gypsy Moth
SPRINGFIELD — State officials say they’ll begin treating northern parts of the state for gypsy moth later this month. The destructive moth eats more than 250 species of trees and shrubs. The insects are capable of stripping plants bare, which leave them more susceptible to other insects, disease and death. The Illinois Department of Agriculture […]
Along The Illinois River, DePue Struggles To Secure Funding For Flood Damage Repair
DePUE – This year’s spring brought high precipitation levels across the state, and each year flooding remains a concern along the state’s rivers. Environmental advocates argue that increased flooding is just one of the results of climate change that tend to impact people of color and low-income communities more severely. One example of that is […]
Pandemic Causing Slowdown For Illinois’ Solar Energy Industry
Tony Martin and his wife moved back to their hometown of Teutopolis, Illinois, about a year ago to start a small solar company just as the industry was taking off in the state. “My wife and I had always envisioned moving back to Illinois,” Martin says. “Now that solar came to Illinois, I felt like, […]
Driven By Climate Change, Heavy Precipitation Brings Flood Risk To Illinois
Last year, Illinois saw record-breaking flooding across most of the state, and this spring’s recent heavy precipitation is causing communities near the Illinois River to prepare for further rises in water levels in the coming days. Floods in Chicago last week and flood risk along the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers are another sign of growing […]
‘Murder Hornets’ Unlikely To Spread To Illinois, Pose Little Threat To Humans
URBANA – Giant hornets, which are native to Asia, arrived in Washington state for the first time at the end of last year. They’ve been dubbed “murder hornets” and garnered public attention in recent weeks. But it’s unlikely the insects will spread outside of Washington to pose any real threat, says Adam Dolezal, assistant professor […]
Illinois Environmental Group Joins Lawsuit Against Trump Administration’s Water Pollution Rollbacks
An Illinois environmental group is joining a coalition in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s rollback of certain water pollution regulations. The lawsuit argues that the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule would loosen protections put in place by the Clean Water Act—threatening water quality in wetlands and ephemeral streams. Champaign-based environmental group Prairie […]
Champaign County Forest Preserve Calling On Individuals To Help Fight Invasive Plant Species
CHAMPAIGN – As Illinois battles the COVID-19 pandemic, the Champaign County Forest Preserve District is fighting another kind of invasive problem—a plant called garlic mustard. Garlic mustard is an edible invasive herb that can spread in woodland areas throughout Illinois in the spring. It can grow rapidly, overcrowding and endangering native plants. Typically, the Champaign […]
Supreme Court Rules Clean Water Act Applies to Groundwater Contamination
Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the Clean Water Act applies to groundwater contamination, which can seep into protected waters like lakes or rivers. The ruling will allow Illinois environmental groups to sue companies that leak coal ash waste, a byproduct of coal burning, into groundwater.