Environment
Read more about the article Loose regulations allow coal ash to threaten riverDarrell Hoemann/The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Since 1955 the Vermilion Power Plant has been storing toxic coal ash in three ponds next to the Middle Fork Vermilion River near Oakwood, Illinois. The river runs through Kickapoo State Park, which is visited by more than a million people each year.

Loose regulations allow coal ash to threaten river

Each year thousands of families boat down the Middle Fork branch of the Illinois Vermilion River below an embankment that holds back 3.3 million cubic yards of toxic coal ash sludge stored in three large ponds. Coal ash pollution is leaching into the river, and the riverbank is eroding under the ponds. We examine what's a stake in this investigative report.

Continue ReadingLoose regulations allow coal ash to threaten river
Read more about the article Closed Vermilion Power Station receives second EPA violation noticeContributed/Eco-Justice Collaborative
A section of the seeps in the riverbank of the Middle Fork river bordering the coal ash ponds at Vistra's Vermilion Power Station May 2, 2018. The Illinois EPA noted the discolored seeps were discharging into the river, staining portions of the waterway and creating “offensive conditions.”

Closed Vermilion Power Station receives second EPA violation notice

A former Vermilion County coal plant heavily criticized for contaminating groundwater has received a violation notice from the Illinois EPA for alleged contamination of the Middle Fork River.

Continue ReadingClosed Vermilion Power Station receives second EPA violation notice
Read more about the article Damage from dicamba spurs confusion, questionsDarrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Soybeans in a field in rural McLean County on August 7.

Damage from dicamba spurs confusion, questions

In 2016, Monsanto released its dicamba-resistant soybeans in the company’s largest ever rollout of a new biotechnology. But its accompanying herbicide – XtendiMaxTM herbicide with VaporGripTM Technology – was not approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency until several months later, leading some farmers to use other versions of the herbicide on their soybeans.

Continue ReadingDamage from dicamba spurs confusion, questions
Read more about the article In wake of new Monsanto seed, Illinois sees more crop damageDarrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Dicamba resistant soybeans in rural McLean County on August 7.

In wake of new Monsanto seed, Illinois sees more crop damage

The Illinois Department of Agriculture has received 368 complaints so far in 2017, which are more alleged pesticide misuse complaints than in the previous three years combined, according to a review of a statewide database of complaints by the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.

Continue ReadingIn wake of new Monsanto seed, Illinois sees more crop damage
Read more about the article Central Illinois already seeing effects of climate changeAbigail Bobrow/For the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Julie Pryde, administrator of the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, speaks at “Climate Change in Illinois: A community conversation”, sponsored by the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, on Tuesday, November 29, at the Champaign Public Library.

Central Illinois already seeing effects of climate change

“We’re actually at the warmest part for the historical record for Illinois,” said State Climatologist Jim Angel, speaking to a crowd of about 60 at the Champaign Public Library on Tuesday. “This is a different climate for what our parents, grandparents or great grandparents would’ve experienced in Illinois.”

Continue ReadingCentral Illinois already seeing effects of climate change
Read more about the article A new coal mine in town: environmental, economic questions still lingerphoto by Darrell Hoemann/CU-Citizen Access.org
Jonathan Ashbrook, left, on his property with Sue and Tom Smith near the proposed site of the Sunrise coal mine outside Homer, Ill. The three are members of a grassroots organization, Stand Up To Coal, opposing the mine. Ashbrook's family has owned land near the seasonal creek known as The Olive Branch for the past 140 years. The original mine permit stated it would use local field drainage tiles for mine discharge, which empties in the Olive Branch about a mile from the mine site.

A new coal mine in town: environmental, economic questions still linger

Keith Rohl remembers the day he was asked to lease the coal rights to his farmland in Homer, Illinois. It was 2009, a wet year for the crops, when he was lined up at the grain elevator with his neighbors hearing about the proposed Bulldog Mine for the first time. “The neighbors were all talking about, ‘You sell your coal rights, and you get to farm your land on top. You’re going to have all kinds of money and everything.’ And I thought ‘Boy, that sounds great to me, and I was ready to sign up,’ ” he said.

Continue ReadingA new coal mine in town: environmental, economic questions still linger
Read more about the article Land conservation efforts endangered in Champaign County and beyondDarrell Hoemann
Illinois Farm Bill biologist Jason Bleich talks with Georgetown farmer Travis Vice about how the type of soils on his farm help determine the subsidy at the USDA office in Danville on Thursday, February 12, 2015.

Land conservation efforts endangered in Champaign County and beyond

As a result of the Farm Bill passed by Congress a year ago, efforts to increase wildlife habitats and natural areas that filter fertilizer run-off will receive less funding and result in fewer acres of conserved land. As of December, there were 9,770 acres set aside in Champaign County for a program in which the federal government rents land from farmers for conservation purposes.

Continue ReadingLand conservation efforts endangered in Champaign County and beyond
Read more about the article Central Illinois farmers rally against proposed water ruleClaire Everett/CU-CitizenAccess.org
Champaign County farmer Lin Warfel points to a drainage area on his property on Nov. 5, 2014. Warfel is among the many farmers who oppose the Waters of the U.S. proposed rule.

Central Illinois farmers rally against proposed water rule

By Robert Holly/CU-CitizenAccess.org — Thousands of agriculture groups and independent farmers – including many from Champaign and other central-Illinois counties – are using a…

Continue ReadingCentral Illinois farmers rally against proposed water rule