News & Commentary

NRDC Sets Region Specific Water Targets for Each Office

August 10, 2021 Expert BlogUnited States, New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Bozeman, Beijing, San Francisco, Santa MonicaMaria McCain

NRDC has seen a steady decline in total water usage institution-wide and has taken steps to advance water stewardship.

No, We Don’t Need a Mine on the Southeast Side

July 22, 2021 Expert BlogChicagoGina Ramirez

Yes, you read that right.

Climate Change Is Already Hurting Illinois. We Need to Act.

July 16, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisJ.C. Kibbey

Climate change is hurting us here and now in Illinois. Our state has the best chance in a generation to take ambitious action on climate change, but the window is closing. We need to act now to pass equitable climate…

Nurses Wanted in a City Long Plagued by Coal Plant Pollution

June 29, 2021 DispatchPeoriaMaudlyne Ihejirika

Through efforts to train a more diverse pool of nurses and create family-sustaining careers, workforce leaders in Peoria, Illinois, are jump-starting their economy and addressing the inequities of the past.

Putting Pembroke’s Priorities Above a Gas Giveaway

May 26, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisAmulya Yerrapotu

Nicor Gas is currently pushing a gas line extension bill to foist costly and dangerous fossil fuel energy onto Pembroke—one of Illinois’s last remaining historical Black farming communities—for decades to come.

Chicago Officials Halt Permit Process for Move of General Iron’s Notorious Metal Shredding Operation to Southeast Side

May 10, 2021 Expert BlogIllinois, ChicagoNRDC

This marks a major step forward in dismantling the environmental racism that has plagued the neighborhood for decades.

A New Customer Bill of Rights: Affordable Utility Services

May 3, 2021 Expert BlogIllinois, United StatesDeron Lovaas, Larry Levine

The vital need for uninterrupted utility service was evident before the coronavirus pandemic, but the COVID-19 public health emergency has reinforced the essential nature of utility service and the threats of energy and water poverty.

Chicago Lays Out New Green Recovery Priorities on COVID-19

April 23, 2021 Expert BlogChicago, IllinoisStefan Schaffer

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a series of environmental priorities aligned with a “Green Recovery,” a significant step toward reducing the city’s reliance on fossil fuels and creating more equitable economic opportunities in the face of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Latinx Leaders Paving the Way for Climate Action

April 20, 2021 Expert BlogLos Angeles, Chicago, New York City, San AntonioEloisa Portillo-Morales

Cities are leading the charge on climate action—reimagining how streets can be used, passing bold climate legislation, and creating green, equitable jobs. At the core of many of these efforts are Latinx leaders, whose activism has been instrumental in paving…

Time to Repeal New England’s Anti-Consumer Dirty Energy Rule

April 15, 2021 Expert BlogEast, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, ConnecticutBruce Ho

The arcane Minimum Offer Price Rule threatens to frustrate New England's efforts to tackle the climate crisis while raising electricity bills by $3 billion dollars over 10 years.

Illinois Clean Cars Program Would Create Jobs and Save Money

April 14, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisDr. Simon Mui, J.C. Kibbey

New reports demonstrate that a Clean Cars Illinois Program would create jobs and save consumers money

Time to Bury Big Oil's Criminal Enhancement Bill for Good

April 11, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisJ.C. Kibbey

An Illinois legislator is pushing for a bill which would significantly enhance criminal penalties for anyone entering or causing damage to a very widely defined group of “critical infrastructure facilities,” effectively chilling peaceful exercise of freedom of speech, and threatening…

Victory in California

March 30, 2021 Expert BlogCalifornia, Chicago, IllinoisLauren P. Phillips

A court rules that California must stop exempting metal shredding facilities from hazardous waste laws, clearing a path to finally protect California communities from metal shredder pollution.

Electric School Buses for Peoria’s Clean Energy Future

March 25, 2021 Expert BlogPeoria, IllinoisSelena Kyle, Alyssa Brown

Two Peoria-area school districts have added electric school buses to their fleets, thanks to the vision and hard work of local educators and students and the creation of the Edwards Settlement Fund.

Consumers Win If Illinois’ Prairie State Coal Plant Closes

March 3, 2021 Expert BlogIllinoisJ.C. Kibbey

Prairie State is one of the top 10 polluters in the nation.

High-Road Clean Energy Jobs: The Key to Building Back Better

February 25, 2021 Expert BlogBoston, Charlotte, St. PaulMaria Stamas, Caroline Keicher

Forward-thinking cities should aim to build back better—and more inclusively—by supporting strategies for a more equitable and sustainable future.

Bipartisan States Commit to Clean and Healthy Transportation

December 21, 2020 Expert BlogMassachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Washington, D.C.Bruce Ho

A bipartisan group of Eastern states announce an agreement to modernize transportation.

Just Transition Milestone: Solar Power for Peoria’s ART Inc.

December 14, 2020 Expert BlogPeoria, IllinoisSelena Kyle, Alyssa Brown

Peoria, Illinois has hit a new milestone in its efforts to transition away from fossil fuels. One of the projects funded through our Clean Air Act settlement with the owners of the E.D. Edwards power plant is done!

Environmental Justice in Chicago: It’s Been One Battle After Another

October 29, 2020 PerspectivesChicagoKeith Mulvihill

Cheryl Johnson and Peggy Salazar have been speaking out against pollution and environmental injustice for decades, but the city of Chicago sees their South Side neighborhoods as sacrifice zones. They are demanding change.

Chicago Takes a New Step Toward Renewable Energy

September 4, 2020 Expert BlogUnited States, Illinois, ChicagoStefan Schaffer, Jay Orfield

Chicago is taking an exciting step toward renewable energy for the city’s buildings by announcing a Request for Proposals.