Federal Court Decision Raises Questions about a Permit Issued for Pond Creek Mine’s Wastewater Pipeline to the Big Muddy River in Southern Illinois

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 20, 2020 Contact: Amanda Pankau, Prairie Rivers Network, 217-840-3057, apankau@prairierivers.org Cindy Skrukrud, Sierra Club, 312-229-4694, cindy.skrukrud@sierraclub.org Williamson Energy, owner of the Pond Creek Mine in Franklin and Williamson County, Illinois, has applied for or received several permits needed to construct a proposed 12-mile pipeline to pump mine wastewater into the Big…

Foresight Energy LP profits rise at the expense of quality of life, clean water and clean air in Illinois

While there may have been excitement on Wall Street this week as Foresight Energy LP began trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Illinois residents living in the shadow of a Foresight Energy LP coal mine have a different story to tell. The financial community lauds the chutzpah of Chris Cline’s Foresight Reserves, which controls…

Illinois DNR Rejects Coal Mine Proposal After Scofflaw Company Defaults On Bond Obligation

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) recently rejected a permit renewal application for Springfield Coal Company’s Industry Mine.  Citing failure of financial obligations, the June 4 permit denial marks a significant step toward stronger enforcement of coal mining regulations in Illinois. “By denying this permit, IDNR is letting Springfield Coal and the mining industry…

Citizens’ Frustrations at Mine Hearing Underscore Need For Reform Measures

Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) recently announced some much needed and welcomed State mining program improvements within the Office of Mines & Minerals (OMM). But, it’s only a start. As was evidenced by citizen frustration at a recent public hearing more changes need to be made, people need to be heard, and OMM needs…

The Legend of Spanish Needle Creek and the Fight for Clean Water

Contributed by Traci Barkley, Prairie Rivers Network The dense grey fog permeated the frigid October morning around Spanish Needle Creek. No longer do deer, wild turkeys, or foxes drink from the clear, babbling brook. And the days of children splashing in the water and gleefully fishing are long gone. In past years, the Extractors systemically…

Pollution Control Board Finds Industry Mine in Violation of Water Permit

For eight years, between 2004 and 2011, Springfield Coal Company’s 5,651-acre Industry Mine in McDonough and Schuyler Counties violated its water permit 624 times. Pollutants including sulfates, iron, manganese, pH and total suspended and settled solids were released at 16 of 17 outflow points into tributaries of Grindstone Creek. Grindstone Creek flows into the LaMoine…

Stop the Swap–Go to Bat for the Bats

How ironic that during the Year of the Bat, the Shawnee National Forest would propose a land exchange in which the Forest Service would trade away a 384-acre tract of land with a known endangered bat species to Peabody Coal, Co. for a strip mine! An Indiana bat maternity roost was found on the parcel…

Citizens of Canton in Fulton County don’t deserve a stocking full of coal!

Will the citizens in Canton, IL be getting a big lump of coal in their stocking? Or will the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) do the right thing and Protect Canton Lake and Copperas Creek from strip mining coal? That’s what a large crowd of people who attended  IEPA public hearings in Canton last night…