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Read more about the article Illinois EPA seeks public input on Dynegy plan to stabilize Middle ForkIllinois EPA via Public Records Request
The banks of the Middle Fork River near Dynegy's coal ash ponds at the Vermilion Power Station are eroding at a rate of 2.3 feet per year. The company is applying for a permit to install more than 22,000 cubic years of rock to prevent the river from breaching the ash ponds.

Illinois EPA seeks public input on Dynegy plan to stabilize Middle Fork

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will have a public hearing on a proposal by Dynegy Midwest Generation, LLC to stabilize the Middle Fork River…

Continue ReadingIllinois EPA seeks public input on Dynegy plan to stabilize Middle Fork
Read more about the article Report shows toxic contamination at coal ash sites throughout IllinoisJack Brighton/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Andrew Rehn of the Prairie Rivers Network presents the report "Cap and Run: Toxic Coal Ash Left Behind by Big Polluters Threatens Illinois Water" in a packed room at the Illinois state capitol building in Springfield.

Report shows toxic contamination at coal ash sites throughout Illinois

A new report published by several state environmental groups shows severe pollution of groundwater at nearly every known coal ash storage site in Illinois.

Continue ReadingReport shows toxic contamination at coal ash sites throughout Illinois
Read more about the article Riverbank near coal ash ponds found unstablePhoto courtesy of the Eco-Justice Collaborative
Erosion of the riverbank below three coal ash ponds at the Vermilion Power Station has been accelerating, requiring corrective action to prevent a potentially massive toxic spill.

Riverbank near coal ash ponds found unstable

Environmentalists and community members in Vermilion County have expressed deep concern over the pollution from toxic chemicals seeping from large coal ash ponds into the Middle Fork River in Vermilion County. But engineering experts warn there may be a greater risk posed by the collapse of the riverbank holding back more than 600 million of gallons of toxic coal ash. A 2017 engineering study paid for by Dynegy Corp., the previous owner of the site, shows that the river is rapidly undermining the riverbanks near the ash ponds. The company has made a least two attempts to harden the riverbank against further erosion, but the banks remain unstable. The study was obtained through an Freedom of Information Act request by the Eco-Justice Collaborative, a non-profit environmental group in Champaign, that has shared it with news outlets. Since the report, the riverbank has continued to erode, according to environmentalists, community leaders and Dynegy itself.

Continue ReadingRiverbank near coal ash ponds found unstable
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