by Traci Barkley, Water Resources Scientist

Illinois’ 24 Coal-Fired Power Plants

Last December, residents living near the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Kingston Steam Plant were flooded with approximately 1.6 billion gallons of toxic coal sludge. It covered the area equivalent to 100 city blocks and flooded into tributaries of the Tennessee River which is the water supply for Chattanooga, Tennessee and millions of people living downstream in Alabama. Burning of coal to make electricity produces solid and liquid waste that is typically stored on-site in huge piles (solids) and impoundments (solids and liquids). Unfortunately, the regulatory framework to control these wastes is weak and under-enforced. Proper management of coal waste is critical in protecting public drinking water supplies and the health of our natural environment.* {Continue Reading »}

Chemical drift occurs when pesticides are blown downwind when applied to fields. Currently farmers are not required to alert their downwind neighbors that chemicals might be floating their way. Children have been sprayed, organic farms have been sprayed, and we all get an extra dose of chemical pollution in our waterways. {Continue Reading »}

On August 23, 2009, Governor Quinn signed a bill protecting Illinois’ drinking water supplies from pollution. To find out more, read the press release from the Illinois Government News Network.

For nearly two decades, PRN has worked to prevent the pollution and degradation of Illinois’ rivers. Water Resources Scientist, Traci Barkley, and Water Resources Specialist, Kim Knowles, review permit applications for wastewater discharges from municipal, mining and industrial practices that have the potential to harm Illinois waterways.

Here is an update on some of their latest work:

Challenged dam proposal for Sangamon County

Summary: A new dam has been proposed for Horse Creek in Sangamon County that will bury over 100 acres of wetlands, 80 acres of streams and more than 1,500 acres of forest. Proponents claim Hunter Dam is needed to create a backup water supply for the City of Springfield, but we believe there are more sustainable and less environmentally harmful ways of ensuring an adequate water supply. {Continue Reading »}

If you happen to be out walking, driving, canoeing, or fishing and you see what may be a case of illegal dumping or an unlawful discharge of water pollution, you should immediately report the incident.

What do you report?

Fish kills, discoloration in the water or an oily sheen on the water, illegal dumping in our waterways, unusually high water temperatures, sediment carried off a construction site without controls, or effluent coming from a pipe that smells or look strange. {Continue Reading »}

At Construction Sites

Silt fences can reduce sediment polllution from entering rivers

Many of you have seen large construction projects underway in your neighborhoods, and you may have noticed a lot of dirt coming off the site. This dirt that is tracked into roads or washed off the construction site ends up in our streams where it settles, smothering streambeds and destroying habitat, and muddies the water, making it difficult for fish to see their prey.

Existing law, under the water pollution permitting program of the Clean Water Act, requires that dirt be maintained on site to the extent possible and states that construction sites may not contribute to stream impairments. To comply with the law, each construction site must develop and implement a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan that describes the techniques the contractor will use to prevent soil from leaving the site. Unfortunately, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) does not review these plans or monitor sites frequently to ensure that plans are followed. Therefore, it is up to local citizens and local governments to ensure that these laws are enforced. {Continue Reading »}