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March 10, 2003
 

Illinois’ Communities At Risk
From Unpermitted Power Plants and Factories

Chicago, IL – Today, a coalition of environmental and public health groups filed a formal petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requesting action to fix Illinois’ clean air operating permit program. Under federal law, Illinois was required to issue operating permits to the state’s 733 largest sources of air pollution by March 7, 1998. As of Feb. 4, 2003 two hundred and seventy-two of the state’s largest air pollution sources still lack operating permits.

An operating permit establishes monitoring and reporting requirements, and informs the public about a company’s compliance record. It is also a vital tool for enforcing clean air protections. The coalition is requesting U.S. EPA to find that the program fails to meet the minimum federal requirements and work with state’s political leaders to promptly fix the program.

"In the Midwest only Ohio has a worse record than Illinois for issuing permits and protecting its residents from air pollution," said Bruce Nilles of the Sierra Club. "For the past eight years the state’s air program has lacked the resources and staff to issue permits, conduct inspections, and take enforcement actions against the state’s largest polluters. This is illegal and places hundreds of Illinois’ communities at risk."

The operating permit program is designed to ensure that the state’s largest polluters comply with clean air protections. Without these protections in place, there is more of the unregulated pollution that contributes to premature death, increased cancer rates, asthma attacks and other breathing problems. "Over 540,000 adults and children suffer from asthma in the Chicago area alone," said Brian Urbaszewski, Director of Environmental Health Programs at the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago. "We must fix this program," Urbaszewski noted, "otherwise the state won’t achieve clean air standards and more residents will have breathing problems."

"This vital program to protect our air has never worked properly because it has lacked the resources to hire the staff to protect our communities," said Jonathan Goldman, Executive Director, Illinois Environmental Council. When EPA approved the state’s permit program in 1995, Illinois estimated that its fees would generate $17.8 million, enough to hire 228 staff to administer the program. In FY 2003 permit fees will generate $11 million, enough to hire less than 100 staff to regulate all major sources of air pollution throughout Illinois. "Illinois businesses must pay their fair share of permit fees so we can have more inspectors out in our communities making sure the state’s largest power plants and factories are complying with clean air laws."

Verena Owen, Lake County Conservation Alliance added, "operating permits benefit the public. They contain information about a source's emissions limits and they require monitoring and reporting of pollution, as well as reporting of violations of permit conditions. Operating permits bring about greater accountability by the industry and more effective enforcement, both leading to improvements in air quality."

Almost three million Illinois children live within 30 miles of coal-fired power plants, more than any other state in the union," said Brian Metcalf, Environmental Advocate for the Illinois Public Interest Research Group (Illinois PIRG). "The health and well-being of all Illinoisans necessitates immediate action to fix this broken program," added Metcalf.

“While all citizens are at risk from exposure to air pollution from coal-fired power plants, those living closest to these plants in the Little Village and Pilsen communities, children, senior citizens, people with lung and heart disease, and those with diabetes, are at greatest risk,” said Juan Miguel Turnil, Coordinator, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization. “These neighborhoods are also economically disadvantaged and predominately Latino,” he added.

“Chicago’s largest sources of air pollution – the Fisk and Crawford coal-fired power plants - are two unpermitted and largely unregulated coal-fired power plants located just yards from the predominantly Latino neighborhoods of Pilsen and Little Village,” said Dorian Breuer, membership coordinator of the Pilsen / Southwest Side Green Party. “Residents in Pilsen and Little Village are very aware of the need to regulate pollution sources. Two weeks ago, voters in both neighborhoods passed by 86% an advisory referendum asking that the two Chicago coal-fired power plants be ordered to reduce their pollution by 90%.”

None of the state’s 23 coal-fired power plants have a federal operating permit despite being the largest sources of the soot that contributes to increased numbers of hospitalizations, emergency room visits and premature deaths.