Illinois on May 27 became the third state in the nation to pass legislation requiring coal ash protections beyond federal requirements. 

The state’s House passed the Coal Ash Pollution Prevention Act (SB 9) in a 77-36 vote on Monday, only weeks after Senate passage of the bill in a 39-9 vote on May 9. The bill, sponsored by State Sen. Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) and State Rep. Carol Ammons (D-Champaign), now proceeds to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s (D) desk, where it will likely be signed into law. 

SB 9, which environmental groups lauded as a “groundbreaking bill,” amends the Illinois Environmental Protection Act by acknowledging that “[Coal combustion residuals (CCR)] generated by the electric generating industry has caused groundwater contamination and other forms of pollution at active and inactive plants throughout this [s]tate.” 

Though it outlines some exceptions, the bill essentially prohibits the discharge, directly or indirectly, of any contaminants from a CCR surface impoundment into the environment. Under the bill, generators also cannot construct, install, modify, operator, or shutter any CCR surface impoundments without a permit from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (ILEPA).…

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