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Fracking
PI Original
by Ashlee Rezin
3:01pm
Wed May 1

Quigley Goes On Climate Change Tour, Hopes Increased Awareness Can Result In Legislative Action (VIDEO)

Environment

Too few congressional delegates fully grasp — or even believe in — the adverse effects of climate change on the environment, according to U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D, IL-5). In the hopes of broadening his understanding and equipping himself to translate the message of climate change adaptation strategies, Quigley hosted a two-day Climate Tour across Chicago this week.

PI Original
by Ellyn Fortino
3:30pm
Fri Mar 22
1 comment

Environmentalists Urge State Lawmakers To Support Fracking Moratorium (VIDEO)

Environment

Environmentalists and public health advocates at today’s demonstration against fracking at the Thompson Center say the Illinois Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act, which has earned the support of Gov. Pat Quinn, doesn’t go far enough to protect the environment or ground and drinking water. Progress Illinois was there to learn more about why they are calling for a two-year fracking moratorium.

PI Original
by Ashlee Rezin
6:19pm
Fri Mar 15

Illinois Congressmen Push Bills On DOD Audit, Future Of U.S. Physicians & Fracking

Congress

Three bills in Congress received co-sponsorship from Illinois legislators this week ranging from a call to audit the Pentagon to an investigation of the environmental and health consequences of fracking. We take a closer look at the bills.

Quick Hit
by Ashlee Rezin
5:49pm
Wed Mar 13
1 comment

Anti-Fracking Protesters March On Statehouse, Madigan Supports Moratorium

More than 100 protesters descended on the Illinois Statehouse in Springfield yesterday to rally against a regulatory bill and call for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in Illinois.

Opponents to hydraulic fracturing say it has a negative environmental impact, including extreme water and air pollution. Demonstrators yesterday spoke with legislators and passed petitions that urged lawmakers to support a two-year moratorium on fracking in Illinois.

Read more »

PI Original
by Ashlee Rezin
8:07pm
Tue Mar 5
1 comment

Aversion To Fracking Continues In Illinois Despite Compromise Bill

Environment

As the Illinois Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act was moved to committee yesterday, a coalition of 15 organizations sent a letter to Gov. Pat Quinn and the Illinois General Assembly, asking for a ban on hydraulic fracturing, instead of regulations on the oil and gas drilling technology.

Quick Hit
by
1:25pm
Mon Feb 25
1 comment

Op-Ed: Protecting Illinois From Fracking

The following was written by Jack Darin, director of the Sierra Club, Illinois Chapter.

The prospect of the gas industry coming Illinois to extract gas from beneath our state using high-volume hydraulic fracturing has caused a great deal of controversy and concern, especially in parts of Illinois where leasing for drilling rights has been underway for well over a year. Horror stories from other states about open pits of toxic wastewater, secret brews of toxins injected into the earth, air emissions sickening neighbors, and contaminated drinking water are just a few of the impacts seen elsewhere.  Read more »

Quick Hit
by Michael Sandler
12:50pm
Wed Aug 1, 2012
1 comment

Don’t Frack With Us: SAFE Group Rallies Against Hydraulic Fracturing In Illinois

On Monday afternoon, a group of protestors outside the James R. Thompson Center called for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in southern Illinois.

At the rally, Southern Illinoisians Against Fracturing our Environment (SAFE) protested the practice of hydraulic fracturing. Known as fracking for short, the oil and gas drilling technique injects a mix of water, sand, and chemicals into the ground to create cracks in deep rock layers. The cracks release natural gas. (Read PI’s previous reporting on fracking here.)

Proponents of fracking say it will supply America with its own source of natural gas, but SAFE contends the process contaminates drinking water and pollutes farmland. The group doesn’t believe enough information has been gathered on the effect fracking has on the environment, and its members met with one of Gov. Pat Quinn’s representatives before the rally.

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