Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Energy and the Environment
Durbin Pushes For Protection Against Harmful Pollution In East Chicago
WASHINGTON - Following a recent Chicago Tribune article, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today pressed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and SunCoke Energy to address SunCoke Energy's Indiana Harbor coke-making facility's violations and contributions to Chicago's air pollution. Indiana Harbor has been cited by the EPA six times since 2010 for violations including high levels of sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, and lead. Yet, the EPA has not yet taken action against Indiana Harbor Co… Continue Reading
09.28.17
Durbin, Duckworth, Colleagues To Trump: We Must Do More For Puerto Rico And U.S. Virgin Islands
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and 35 additional colleagues in a letter to President Trump to express deep concern about the situation in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In the letter, the senators wrote, "We write to express deep concern about the dire humanitarian situation in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In Puerto Rico, Hurricane Maria recently kn… Continue Reading
08.07.17
Durbin Statement On Brandon Road Study Release
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) released the Brandon Road Study, a draft plan for keeping Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes. This draft plan was set to be released on February 28, 2017, but had been stalled by the Trump Administration. "After an unexplained five month delay, the Trump Administration finally released the draft plan for keeping Asian carp from reaching and irreparably harm… Continue Reading
08.02.17
Durbin Presses Trump Administration On McCook Reservoir Funding
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) met with officials from the Assistant Secretary of the Army's (ASA) office and the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to demand answers on why funding for the McCook Reservoir Project in Chicago has not been included in the President's budget for the second year in a row, despite repeated Congressional directives to do so. The McCook Reservoir Project is a major flood damage reduction reservoir of the Chicagoland Underflow Plan (CUP) that will provide m… Continue Reading
07.27.17
Durbin Pushes For Protection Against Harmful Pollution In Southeast Chicago
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today pressed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and S.H. Bell to address petroleum coke (pet coke) and manganese pollution concerns in Southeast Chicago. Pet coke is a byproduct of refining crude oil into fuels such as gasoline and diesel. While the Clean Air Act clearly directs the EPA to protect human health, there are no current standards in place to guard against particulates specifically… Continue Reading
07.20.17
Durbin Proposal To Release Brandon Road Study On Asian Carp Included In Senate Appropriations Bill
WASHINGTON - Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved its $38.4 billion energy and water spending package, including a provision offered by U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) to release a draft plan within 30 days of the bill's passage for keeping Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes. This plan, referred to as the Brandon Road Study, was set to be released on February 28, 2017, but has been stalled by … Continue Reading
07.13.17
Durbin, Duckworth: Plainfield Tank Car Derailment A Wake-UP Call For DOT
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called on U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine Chao to do more to prevent railroad tank car accidents like the one in Plainfield, Illinois on June 30, 2017, in which multiple rail cars on a Canadian National (CN) train carrying crude oil derailed, causing an estimated 45,000 gallons of oil to leak out of the tank cars. "We are extremely grateful for the hard work of Plainfield's first responders, … Continue Reading
06.29.17
Durbin Joins Legislation Demanding Trump Administration Release Report On Asian Carp
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Gary Peters (D-MI) to introduce the Stop Asian Carp Now Act, which will require the Trump Administration to release the Brandon Road Study within seven days of the bill's enactment. The Brandon Road Lock and Dam study will provide important guidance on how best to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes and is an important hurdle before further action can be taken. "With last week's discovery … Continue Reading
06.23.17
Durbin Statement On Discovery Of Asian Carp Near Lake Michigan
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after the discovery of an adult Silver Carp near the T.J. O'Brien Lock and Dam in the Calumet River: "I'm deeply concerned by today's announcement that an adult Silver Carp was discovered a mere nine miles from Lake Michigan. If this invasive species reaches the Great Lakes, it could cause significant economic losses and irreversible damage to the ecosystem, and threaten the drinking water of 30 million Americans. Now … Continue Reading
06.22.17
Durbin, Duckworth, Colleagues to Trump: Act On Russian Cyber Intrusions to U.S. Energy Infrastructure
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth, along with U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Senate colleagues today sent a letter to President Trump urging the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to conduct an analysis of Russian capabilities with respect to cyber-attacks on U.S. energy infrastructure. In the letter, the members request that President Trump, "direct the Department of Energy, in consultation with other relevant agencies, to within 60 days conduct a thorough … Continue Reading
06.01.17
Durbin Statement on Trump Pulling U.S. from Historic Paris Climate Agreement
CHICAGO-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after President Trump announced that the U.S. will pull out of the Paris Climate Accord, an historic deal negotiated by former-President Obama to combat climate change: "Pulling out of the international agreement to protect this Earth from the threat of climate change is a fateful message to our children and grandchildren. The President and his party have chosen politics over science and greed over responsibility. With t… Continue Reading
04.26.17
Durbin to Trump: Protect America's National Parks & Monuments
WASHINGTON - As President Trump signed a new Executive Order to strip America's National Parks and Monuments, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, legislation to protect 9.2 million acres of land in Utah that is rich in archaeological resources and home to numerous rare plant and animal species. In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin explained how these landscapes are also the access point for many national parks and offer research, educational, and rec… Continue Reading
04.25.17
Durbin, Kaptur, Bipartisan Great Lakes Coalition Press EPA Chief to Keep Region 5 Office Open
WASHINGTON - Following reports that the Trump Administration plans to abolish Region 5 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - which serves Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Minnesota, and Ohio - as part of the fiscal year 2018 budget, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin and U.S. Representative Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) led a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers from the Great Lakes region in calling for the Region 5 office to remain intact and fully supported. In a bicameral letter to EPA Admini… Continue Reading
04.24.17
Durbin, Deutch Introduce Bicameral Climate Change Adapt America Fund Act
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Ted Deutch (D-FL) today introduced the Climate Change Adapt America Fund Act, bicameral legislation that would create an "Adapt America Fund" administered by the Secretary of Commerce and used to finance climate change adaptation and infrastructure resiliency projects. The bill would also authorize the U.S. Department of Treasury to issue up to $200 million annually in "Climate Change Bonds" to be purchased by Americans concer… Continue Reading
04.17.17
Durbin Statement on Reports Trump Administration will Close Chicago EPA Office
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after the Chicago Sun-Times reported that the Trump Administration plans to close the Environmental Protection Agency's Region 5 Office located in Chicago. "I am deeply concerned by reports the Trump Administration plans to close the EPA's regional office in Chicago. Such an action would be irresponsible - especially in light of last week's chemical spill in Lake Michigan - and demonstrate clear disregard for the health … Continue Reading
04.12.17
Durbin, Illinois Delegation Urge FEMA to Make Disaster Deductible Concept Fair to States and Localities
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today led the Illinois congressional delegation in a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) expressing concern over the impact FEMA's Public Assistance deductible concept will have on states' ability to receive federal assistance after a disaster occurs. FEMA's Public Assistance deductible would require states to meet a predetermined, annual expenditure of state emergency management funds or disaster recovery costs to qualify for FE… Continue Reading
04.11.17
Durbin, Duckworth, Great Lakes Senators Urge Trump Administration to Release Army Corps Brandon Road Study to Stop Spread of Asian Carp
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) in calling on the Trump Administration to release a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study that recommends specific measures to prevent Asian Carp from reaching beyond the Brandon Road Lock and Dam, a crucial chokepoint in the Chicago waterway system. The study, which is critical to stopping the flow of Asian Carp and other invasive species, was set to be released at the end of February but… Continue Reading
04.10.17
Durbin Joins Call for EPA Chief to Address Likely Conflicts of Interest Regarding Clean Power Plan
NEW YORK - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined his colleagues in calling for Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt to address the apparent conflict of interest regarding his participation in EPA's review of the Clean Power Plan, which Mr. Pruitt formerly challenged in court as Oklahoma's Attorney General. Durbin, along with Senators Tom Carper (D-DE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), E… Continue Reading
03.28.17
Trump Message in Fight Against Climate Change: America Surrenders
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after President Donald Trump signed an executive order dismantling America's efforts to reduce pollution and fight climate change: "Just about everyone agrees that we should try to pollute less, but not Donald Trump-he just surrendered in the fight against climate change. He's put the future health and safety of America's children back into the hands of big oil companies, and turned us back toward a dange… Continue Reading
03.22.17
Durbin Meets With MWRD To Express Continued Support For McCook Reservoir
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with members of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) to express his continued support for the construction and funding of the McCook Reservoir Project. Durbin, along with Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) recently pressed the Army Corps for strong and continued support for the construction of the McCook Reservoir Project in a letter to Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army Dou… Continue Reading