The state’s top prosecutor says the company did not take steps “to protect the community from air pollution and compromised air quality” after the implosion covered the neighborhood in dust.
Environment
Developer in Little Village Demolition Gone Wrong Cited By State EPA With Violating Pollution Laws
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office is reviewing the incident that covered the Chicago neighborhood in dust.
Contractor In Little Village Smokestack Fiasco Was Cited In March For Blowing Dust — But City OK’d Demolition Anyway
A Hilco affiliate, contractor MCM Management Corp. and partners were hit with $3.75 million in environmental violations in Maryland.
Chicago Aldermen Call for Hearings Into Failing City Recycling Programs
Citing an investigation by the BGA that revealed systemic failures in Chicago’s Blue Cart recycling program, aldermen demand public examination aimed at improving the city’s worst-in-the-nation programs.
Lightfoot’s Actions on Environmental Campaign Promises Are Off to a Slow Start
Chicago mayor says budget constraints have cooled her ambitious plans. Her 2020 budget includes no new funding for additional pollution inspectors.
CDC To Review Air Pollution Near East St. Louis, Duckworth Says
Illinois senator asked for assessment of toxic releases from Veolia plant, a site profiled in a recent BGA story about President Trump’s diminished EPA.
Trump Rolls Back EPA Oversight in Midwest, Favoring Polluters
EPA inspections and staff levels plunge in the Chicago regional office as regulations are abandoned and policy favors job creation over clean air and water. The Midwest is among the areas hit hardest by the cutbacks, with inspections down 60% since Trump took office.
Neighborhoods Face Extinction As Floods Increase
Illinois towns paying the price for repeated cleanups consider buying out residents and converting homesteads to wetlands and parks.
Storms, Flooding Hit Poorest Communities Hardest
In the Chicago area, flooding has often disproportionately hit the south suburbs, particularly low-income communities. And it’s going to get worse with climate change.
Watchdog Slams Chicago’s Air Pollution Oversight
Audit by the inspector general follows a BGA/Medill investigation that found under Mayor Rahm Emanuel the city’s environmental enforcement declined amid cuts to inspection staff.