Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Energy and the Environment
Durbin, Senators To EPA: Protect Communities In Region Five
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Gary Peters (D-MI), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tina Smith (D-MN), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), today urged the new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 Administrator, Kurt Thiede, to prioritize protecting public health and safety and supporting the hard-working career professionals within Region 5 - which includes Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and … Continue Reading
January 29, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Call On ArcelorMittal To Clean Up Its Act Following Pollution Violations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today urged ArcelorMittal to take responsibility for its Burns Harbor facility's attempt to cover up the leaking of toxic chemicals into the Little Calumet River and Lake Michigan. In a letter to ArcelorMittal President and CEO John Brett, Durbin and Duckworth slammed the company for "a recurring, objectionable pattern of environmental and public health violations." "By misleading regulators about the results, … Continue Reading
January 24, 2020
Durbin Pushes Trump Administration To Address Climate Change Impacts On Lake Michigan
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke to Assistant Secretary of the Army (ASA) for Civil Works R.D. James, who oversees the Army Corps, to urge the Corps to provide federal funding for two projects that will protect the Chicago Shoreline from the impacts of climate change. The Trump Administration has yet to fully fund the Great Lakes Resiliency Study authorized by Congress and or provide increased funding to reevaluate and expand the Chicago Shoreline project. "We face … Continue Reading
January 09, 2020
Durbin Leads Bicameral, Bipartisan Coalition In Pledging Support To Australia Amid Ongoing Bushfire Crisis
WASHINGTON - Today, the co-chairs of the bicameral Friends of Australia Caucus, which include U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Roy Blunt (R-MO), and U.S. Representatives Joe Courtney (D-CT-02) and Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08), sent a letter to Australian Ambassador Joe Hockey expressing their full support for the people of Australia during the ongoing bushfire crisis. Durbin, Blunt, Courtney, and Gallagher met with Ambassador Hockey this morning, and a photo of that meeting is available … Continue Reading
January 08, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Call For Investigation Of Arcelormittal Following Reports Of Pollution Violations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to urge the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) to conduct a full investigation of ArcelorMittal's Burns Harbor facility in northwest Indiana following reports from Chicago Tribune and CBS Chicago that the corporation is manipulating water tests and that unacceptable levels of cyanide and ammonia were found in the water discharged from the … Continue Reading
December 20, 2019
Congress Passes Bipartisan Spending Bills With Illinois Priorities Secured By Durbin
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today released the following statement after the Senate passed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 appropriations bills yesterday. The bills are expected to be signed by President Donald Trump today. "These bills invest in Illinois' environment, transportation infrastructure, health, agriculture, service members, and security. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, bringing home federal dollars … Continue Reading
December 18, 2019
Durbin, Members of Illinois Congressional Delegation Press EPA Administrator Wheeler On Ethylene Oxide Emissions
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation today pressed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler about their concerns about ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions at the Medline and Vantage facilities in Lake County. In a meeting with Administrator Wheeler, Durbin pushed for a timeline of regulatory actions by the U.S. EPA, and called on Administrator Wheeler to protect the U.S. EPA's Integrated Risk Information … Continue Reading
December 16, 2019
Durbin Introduces Bill To Protect America's National Parks & Monuments
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, a bill to protect 8.2 million acres of land in Utah that is rich in archaeological resources and home to numerous rare plant and animal species. These landscapes are also the access point for many national parks and offer research, educational, and recreational opportunities for scientists, educators, outdoor enthusiasts, and American families. "These lands are threatened by fossil fuel … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Durbin, Colleagues Send Letter To U.N. Convention And President Trump In Support Of Global Efforts To Combat Climate Change
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), sent a pair of letters today to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and to President Trump about the importance of combatting climate change. In the letter to UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, the Senators expressed support of its global efforts to thwart climate change. "Failing to address the worsening crisis of climate change will wreak damages on all Americans … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Resolution In Support Of U.S. Commitment To Paris Climate Agreement: "We Are Still In"
WASHINGTON-As international negotiators continue discussions at the 25th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Madrid, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA), today joined 13 other Senators in introducing a resolution to express support for the Paris Climate Agreement. The resolution notes the growing scientific urgency around the need for action to combat the climate crisis, and details the bold steps that … Continue Reading
November 25, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth, Lipinski, Foster, Schneider, Casten, Underwood Ask EPA To Issue Stronger Standards For ETO Emissions
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Representatives Dan Lipinski (D-IL-03), Bill Foster (D-IL- 11), Brad Schneider (D-IL-10), Sean Casten (D-IL-06), and Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14) today called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to better protect communities from ethylene oxide (EtO) emitted by industrial processes. The members, in a letter to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, voiced concerns that the EPA's recently proposed actions … Continue Reading
November 19, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Introduce Bill To Support NPS Management Of Pullman Historical Park
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today introduced a bill that would ensure protections for National Park Service (NPS) to acquire land and enter into cooperative agreements at Pullman National Historical Park in order to advance park management. The legislation, the Pullman National Historical Park Act 2019, would ensure protections for the Pullman area and provide NPS more flexibility to work with historic buildings and assets that it does not own, but … Continue Reading
October 10, 2019
Durbin Continues To Push For Quincy Bay Restoration Project
QUINCY - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined local officials and members of the Quincy Bay Area Restoration and Enhancement Association (QBAREA) to discuss the need to restore one of the largest natural bays of the Upper Mississippi River. Last month, Durbin included language in the Senate FY2020 Energy & Water appropriations bill directing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to continue working with Quincy to prioritize the environmental restoration project at Quincy … Continue Reading
September 30, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On Sterigenics Closing Willowbrook Facility
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today released the following statement after Willowbrook, Illinois-based Sterigenics, Inc. announced it would close its facility: "This is welcome news for Willowbrook residents, but we remain troubled that the Trump EPA was content remaining on the sidelines instead of taking action on this public health crisis. The agency's lack of urgency to use its authority to issue updated federal emission standards for ethylene … Continue Reading
September 20, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth, Colleagues Introduce Resolution To Protect Ambitious National Fuel Economy And Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards
WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) and 31 colleagues in reintroducing a Senate resolution in response to the Trump Administration's efforts to roll back federal fuel economy and greenhouse gas standards designed to fight climate change and protect Americans' access to clean air. Durbin, Duckworth, and their colleagues are reintroducing the resolution in advance of the Administration's expected move to formally revoke … Continue Reading
August 29, 2019
Illinois Congressional Delegation Urges President Trump To Support State's Request For Federal Assistance From Flood Damage
WASHINGTON - The entire Illinois Congressional Delegation sent a letter to President Donald Trump supporting Illinois Governor JB Pritzker's request for federal assistance for the State of Illinois to help 33 counties recover from severe flooding that occurred from February to July. This year's flooding is the longest flood event to ever occur in Illinois. "Many communities experienced power outages, road closures, and significant damage to homes and businesses. More than 1,694 homes and … Continue Reading
August 26, 2019
Durbin Calls For An End To Small Refinery Waivers And Restoring Integrity To The Renewable Fuel Standard
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, along with Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Gary Peters (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), today urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to end the harmful abuse of small refinery hardship waivers under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In a letter sent to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Durbin and his … Continue Reading
July 30, 2019
Durbin Introduces Bill To Make Cahokia Mounds A National Historic Park
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced a bill that would designate the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site as a National Historic Park. Cahokia Mounds is currently a National Historic Landmark, but Durbin's bill would provide a new designation that ensures protection for the ancient mounds in St. Clair and Madison counties along with Sugarloaf Mound in St. Louis-the city's only remaining mound. "The Cahokia Mounds represent the indigenous peoples and landscapes that … Continue Reading
July 29, 2019
Illinois Congressional Delegation Urges FEMA to Support State's Request For Preliminary Flood Damage Assessment
WASHINGTON - The entire Illinois Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Acting Administrator Peter Gaynor supporting Illinois Governor JB Pritzker's request for an extension in conducting its Preliminary Damage Assessment from flooding events between February and July. A flood of this duration had not been seen in Illinois since the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, and at least 35 percent of the State's counties were affected and declared a … Continue Reading
July 26, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Renew And Expand Funding For The Great Lakes
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), today introduced bipartisan legislation to reauthorize and expand funding for the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2019 will reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which is set to expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2021, for another five years. The bill increases the current authorization level … Continue Reading