In the Media

“Speaking at a news conference in Springfield’s eco-friendly Southwind Park, Pritzker joined officials from the Illinois Environmental Council and the Illinois chapter of the Sierra Club, emphasizing the need to take local action to address climate change while also taking a few verbal jabs at the president.” Read

Sun-Times Editorial BoardIn the Illinois River last summer, algae blooms gave off a toxin that can be absorbed through the skin, inhaled as a mist or swallowed, causing rashes, hives, diarrhea, vomiting, coughing and wheezing. In some cases, the toxins can be fatal. Similarly, residents of Toledo, Ohio,

Heather CheroneThe city’s just-approved $10.67 billion 2019 spending plan estimates that the city will rake in $5.9 million from people who don’t bother — or forget — to bring reusable bags when shopping. Jen Walling, the executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, which pushed for the tax,

Madeleine DoubekLast month, the Better Government Association’s investigative unit reported that a “managed competition” program being used for residential recycling wasn’t being managed well at all…The report found neighborhoods on the Northwest, West and Far South sides were 20 times more likely to have their recycling diverted to

Jake GriffinIllinois is one of 30 states that do not charge owners of electric and hybrid cars an annual fee to make up for lost motor fuel taxes, but that could change.Advocates for the fees believe electric and hybrid car owners are getting enough incentives already. Federal tax

Katie PyzykChicago Alderman John Arena is calling for the city to consider eliminating its flat $9.50 per household waste collection fee in exchange for a volume-based rate, giving residents a financial incentive to recycle. Following a recent council hearing on the topic, Arena released a statement saying, “The

Erica GundersonLast week, Chicago city officials revealed that a significant sampling of city homes retrofitted with new smart water meters have elevated lead levels in their tap water. And the installation of the meters may be contributing to it. “We worked to pass a law in 2017 about

Cole LauterbachIllinois lawmakers heard from experts and people affected by the chemicals being released by a suburban Chicago facility at a Friday hearing. Willowbrook-based Sterigenics has been using a cleaning agent called ethylene oxide, known as ETO, to clean medical supplies. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said

Alex RuppenthalUnder the new law, agencies must formulate food donation policies that outline nearby food pantries, soup kitchens and other organizations that accept donations. Walling said the law will be especially helpful to agencies that run hospitals and corrections facilities, where the population can vary from day to

Press release submissionGov. Bruce Rauner and Illinois EPA Director Alec Messina launched the “Driving a Cleaner Illinois” program, aimed at improving air quality in the state by primarily removing old diesel engines from service. Jen Walling, Executive Director of the Illinois Environmental Council (IEC), voiced support for the

Alex RuppenthalThe new law permits the cultivation of industrial hemp, a variety of the cannabis plant that is used to make paper, fabrics, biodegradable plastics, construction materials and a variety of foods, including granola. The bill was introduced in January by state Sen. Toi Hutchinson, D-Chicago Heights. “We

Alex RuppenthalUnder the new measure, introduced by state Rep. Carol Sente, D-Vernon Hills, and signed into law Monday by Gov. Bruce Rauner, state agencies must request a bid for compost as part of any landscaping project that uses off-site soil. Agencies must use compost in the project if

By Community Contributor tbryersSenate Bill 2606 requires Illinois government agencies entering into contracts with food vendors to adopt a policy that allows for leftover food to be donated. The policy must be circulated to all agency employees and include the names of nearby soup kitchens, food banks, and

By Yvonne Kim“’I worry about how we’re placing the responsibility of reducing plastic on consumers when it really is big corporations that are making the choices,’ said Jennifer Walling, the council’s executive director. ‘It’s great that (individuals) are changing their behavior, but if we really want change it

By Mauricio PeñaIllinois Environmental Council Executive Director Jennifer Walling said the time to have a discussion with stakeholders in the city about reducing plastic litter in Chicago is now. While no legislation has been drafted for the state, Walling said they are looking at what other cities have

By Leo Ji“In January, the Alliance, together with the Shedd Aquarium and the Illinois Environmental Council, issued a joint resolution recognizing the implementation of a federal law banning plastic micro-beads from personal-care products. Even before the federal law, manufacturers had begun to voluntarily remove the micro-beads from products,

By Brett Chase | Better Government Association“Quarry landfills do not have the appropriate safeguards in place to protect groundwater,” says Jennifer Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council. “The failure to pass legislation this year that would require groundwater monitoring put Illinois communities at risk.” Read the

By Daily Journal staffThe Illinois Environmental Council reports the Illinois Fiscal 2019 budget has broken “a long trend of cuts and unspent appropriations” for natural resources, with an “especially heartening” 6.7 percent increase for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. A highlight is $37 million match for the

By Alex Ruppenthal“An existing law prevents state agencies from signing food service contracts that prohibit donations. But even though agencies are permitted to donate food, they are less likely to do so without a plan in place, said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, which

By Jim NewtonThe resolution has the support of some environmental groups in Illinois, including the Illinois Environmental Council. “With this resolution, Illinois commits to protecting people over profits, by not waiving similar environmental regulations for projects coming into our state,” Colleen Smith, legislative director of the Environmental Council.

By Ricardo Torres“On Thursday, the Environmental and Conversion Committee for the Illinois State Senate passed a resolution urging ‘Illinois agencies to take whatever actions possible to protect against the loss of water resources, the potential flooding, and other ecological impacts from this development.’ The resolution cites Foxconn’s plans

By Adalberto Toledo“The [University of Illinois] students have been working closely with the Illinois Environmental Council, which last week held an Environmental Lobby Day at the Capitol for 10 of their priority bills as legislators in Springfield finished off this session.” Read the entire piece at The News-Gazette

By Adalberto Toledo“The [University of Illinois] students have been working closely with the Illinois Environmental Council, which last week held an Environmental Lobby Day at the Capitol for 10 of their priority bills as legislators in Springfield finished off this session.” Read the entire piece at The News-Gazette

By Brett Chase | Better Government AssociationA number of health, environmental and clean energy groups have asked the state EPA to put the brakes on its high-speed spending plan and make the process more transparent to taxpayers. “Clearly, they’re in a hurry to spend the money,” said Al

By WAND“Jennifer Walling, Executive Director for the Illinois Environmental Council, said, ‘Dynegy is a big corporation that owns several coal plants in Illinois. They’ve just been bought by a Texas corporation called Vistras, and they want to get a bail out. That is not only bad for the

By Bailey Bischoff“The negative environmental effect of microbeads first gained attention in 2013 after a report by 5 Gyres and the State University of New York at Fredonia revealed a high concentration of the plastics had infiltrated the Great Lakes. In response, Illinois became the first state to

By Johnathan Hettinger“‘There has been such a slow burn of cuts and cuts and cuts,’ said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, an association of 80 environmental groups across Illinois. ‘But what this administration is doing is worse because they havethe capacity to do more.’”

By Brenden Moore“Soil and water conservation districts, which have their roots in the Dust Bowl, are a collection of 96 mostly county-level districts that work with local farmers and landowners to prevent soil erosion and conserve the state’s water resources. ‘One of the things that’s really important about

By Alex Ruppenthal“‘I think that public hearings are incredibly important on this issue because what VW did was harm the public, harm the environment,’ said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council. ‘Doing this without giving the public a chance to weigh in was a real

By Brendan Pedersen“‘We are calling on every Illinois politician, including those, Republican and Democratic alike, campaigning for Governor, every community leader, and every voter to commit to these goals and join the conversation, so the state wins a clean, equitable energy future,’ said Jen Walling, executive director of

By Alex Ruppenthal“‘In each of these cases, this is literally neighbors,’ said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, which is helping to craft the legislation. ‘This is their property and their ability to defend their property rights.’” Read the entire piece at Chicago Tonight

By IEC Executive Director Jen Walling“Soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs) in Illinois are the only locally based infrastructure that protect Illinois’ soil and water. Cuts to these programs have cost taxpayers money through dirtier water and soil erosion, as well as harm to the environment and public

“Here in Illinois, we’re choosing a different direction,” [IEC Executive Director Jen Walling] said. She pointed out that the legislature approved the Future Energy Jobs Act just weeks after Trump was elected. The wide-ranging measure established energy efficiency goals for electricity companies and started a fund to help

The Illinois Environmental Council’s [Executive Director] Jen Walling said the council supports “a range of proposals that would reduce plastic pollution including education, increased littering enforcement, fees, and bans of single use plastic material, as feasible.” Read the entire article at Great Lakes Now.

“I think passing this law prompted a lot of schools to do testing and it showed there were issues there,” said [IEC Executive Director Jen Walling], who added the agency plans to advocate that testing be expanded to middle and high schools.” Hear and read the story at

“I think passing this law prompted a lot of schools to do testing and it showed there were issues there,” said [IEC Executive Director Jen Walling], who added the agency plans to advocate that testing be expanded to middle and high schools.” Read entire article at The State

“[IEC is] supportive of groundwater monitoring of these quarries. We think that would be a very positive step because with the material that they are taking – if they are going to take that in – we should have monitoring to make sure that they are not taking

“Milkweed is labeled a weed because it’s something that in the past was a really prolific plant,” said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, which supports the bill. “Farmers had some issues with [milkweed]. But because of habitat changes, it’s not a noxious weed anymore.”

“This rule change would limit the state’s ability to enforce levee height limits,” Jennifer Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council said. “Without oversight, these levees could increase flooding downstream which will not only harm communities, but devastate riparian natural areas and wildlife habitat.” Read the full

Through his work with the Illinois Stewardship Alliance, the Illinois Environmental Council and Downtown Springfield Inc., [State Representative Tim Butler] has seen the benefits of local food systems.“I’ve seen firsthand over the years the impact that local food systems have on the economy, on people’s health and just

“While swimming in the river is unthinkable today, it’s important to remember that only a couple decades ago, fishing was not on the menu,” said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, in a press release. “This event served as a great reminder of the progress

“Illinois as a whole has a high number of lead pipes moving water within communities, and the problem has been a concern for decades,” Walling said.“With the crisis in Flint, there is an increased public awareness of the ability of lead pipes to contribute lead into the drinking

The Bobcat Foundation worked with Illinois state Sen. Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, and a number of other groups that were involved in the issue, including the IDNR, Illinois Trappers Association, Illinois Humane Society and Illinois Environmental Council.The new law would allow 1,000 permits, increasing from the present 500,

“Open space provides real environmental and economic benefits to Illinois’ residents and should remain a consistent priority among decision-makers,” said Jennifer Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council. “Conservation Land Trusts are experienced in managing natural areas, and therefore make an ideal partner for a public-private partnership

“I think this should be started as soon as possible,” said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council. “I think the sooner the better, the more people who get to participate the better.” Read the full article here.

A forum on renewable energy jobs expected from the Illinois Future Energy Jobs Act is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday at the Trutter Center on the campus of Lincoln Land Community College. Read the full article here.

In January, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a new law requiring schools and day care facilities to test for lead contamination of potable water in their buildings.The law was initiated by the Illinois Environmental Council and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, according to her office. Read the full article

In January, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a new law requiring schools and day care facilities to test for lead contamination of potable water in their buildings.The law was initiated by the Illinois Environmental Council and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, according to her office. Read the full article

A bill that passed unanimously in the Illinois Senate, and now goes to the House, would allow the Illinois Department of Agriculture to license farmers to grow industrial hemp.The Illinois Stewardship Alliance and Illinois Farmers Union initiated this bill, and have collaborated with the Illinois Environmental Council and