FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | OCTOBER 28, 2025
Contact:
Lisa Bralts, Communications Director, Prairie Rivers Network
lbralts@prairierivers.org | 217-417-5456
Nina Struss, River Health and Resiliency Organizer, Prairie Rivers Network
nstruss@prairierivers.org | 217-344-2371 x 215
ROCK ISLAND, IL – The Rock Island City Council voted Monday night to approve the sale of the Casino West site to an area developer, paving the way for construction of a truck stop plaza that, when completed, will threaten the ecological health of the surrounding wetlands, including the Milan Bottoms. Prairie Rivers Network issued the following statement from Nina Struss, the organization’s River Health and Resiliency Organizer and a lifelong Rock Island resident:
“We are extremely disappointed that the Rock Island City Council made the unacceptable decision to ignore the voices of taxpayers and instead fast track the sale of ten acres of our community’s land adjacent to the Milan Bottoms wetlands complex—a decision that puts this fragile and utterly unique ecosystem at risk.
Data indicates that the proposed development of a truck stop on this land will adversely affect our neighborhoods and businesses, as well as those in communities downstream, by putting them at significant risk of increased flooding.
This development will also add an enormous risk of contamination from accumulations of oil and diesel from the truck stop’s day-to-day operations, as well as the potential for catastrophic petroleum leaks into the adjacent wetlands from the truck stop’s tanks, as happened this year at a similar truck stop in Avoca, Iowa. The ecological damage from such a leak affects not only our wetlands and everything that lives there, but areas downstream, including the Mississippi River—North America’s most endangered river.
Such ecological and environmental injuries can also damage, by extension, the reputation of a region, affecting tourism and economic development. It is frankly quite disheartening that the Council has decided to move forward in this shortsighted and cynical way.
Prairie Rivers Network is committed to protecting these and other wetlands in our state. Our organization will monitor the progress of this development closely as it unfolds, holding the city and developers accountable for this decision and all future actions. We will take every step possible to protect and respect this priceless environment.”
At Prairie Rivers Network (PRN), we protect water, heal land, and inspire change. Using the creative power of science, law, and collective action, we protect and restore our rivers, return healthy soils and diverse wildlife to our lands, and transform how we care for the earth and for each other. PRN is the Illinois affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation.
