Michael Hawthorne – Page 30

Bottles of slow-release fertilizer produced from recovered phosphorus are displayed at the Stickney Water Reclamation Plant. A partnership with Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies is expected to cut the plant's phosphorus discharges by about 30 percent.

Chicago turning river pollutants into fertilizer

June 14, 2024 at 6:46 p.m.

Chicago officials boast of having the world's largest sewage treatment plant, but that also means the metropolitan area produces massive amounts of wastewater that pollutes rivers all the way to...

Lead levels in Illinois water systems

June 10, 2018 at 4:44 p.m.

Because of the health risks posed by lead contamination, the federal government requires water systems across the country to test samples from household taps for the toxic metal. Most water...

Chemistry director Ravi Swamy, of Aqua Pro-Tech Laboratories, tests drinking water samples at the facility March 25, 2016, in Fairfield, N.J. Responding to the crisis in Flint, Mich., school officials across the country are testing for lead in the water flowing from classroom sinks and cafeteria faucets.

Chicago to start testing water in some schools for toxic lead

May 22, 2019 at 9:45 p.m.

Shortly after Chicago Public Schools disclosed the district has not tested water fountains for lead contamination, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said the nation's third-largest school system will begin checking water in...

Paul Diaz, an inspector for the Chicago Department of Public Health, explores as he tests for levels of lead at an Auburn Gresham rental home in 2015. A blood test showed that a child living there had a high lead level.

Chicago to start testing water in homes where children are poisoned by lead

June 14, 2024 at 6:47 p.m.

With public officials across the nation under fire for downplaying the health risks posed by lead water pipes, Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration is moving to start testing tap water in...

Water glows green as it's disinfected in the new ultraviolet light treatment system on March 16, 2016 at the O'Brien Water Reclamation Plant in Skokie.

Chicago River cleanup makes waterway safer for recreation

June 14, 2024 at 6:47 p.m.

More than four decades after the Clean Water Act required the rest of America to stop dumping disease-causing pollution into rivers and lakes, the law is catching up to the...

Durbin, Quigley target lead hazards in Section 8 housing with new bill

June 14, 2024 at 6:48 p.m.

Alarmed by lead hazards lingering in older buildings across the nation, lawmakers are pushing to overhaul federal policies that fail to protect children from exposure to the brain-damaging metal in...

A construction crew replaces old water main and lead pipes with updated water main and copper pipes in the 113 block of South Yale on Feb. 23, 2016.

Chicago often tests water for lead in homes where risk is low

June 14, 2024 at 6:48 p.m.

When Chicago officials tested household tap water for lead last year, they largely bypassed parts of the city that face greater risks of exposure to the brain-damaging metal, a Tribune...

New water pipes are delivered to the corner of 113th Street and Stewart Avenue in Chicago on Feb. 2, 2016. A lawsuit filed Feb. 18 says Chicago officials should be forced to remove thousands of lead pipes connecting homes to the city's water supply.

Lawsuit seeks removal of lead pipes in Chicago

May 22, 2019 at 9:24 p.m.

Chicago officials should be forced to remove thousands of lead pipes connecting homes to the city's water supply, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday that accuses the city of failing...

Workers prepare to replace older water mains in the 5100 block of West Roscoe Street on Feb. 2, 2016.

City fails to warn Chicagoans about lead risks in tap water

June 14, 2024 at 6:44 p.m.

More than two years after federal researchers found high levels of lead in homes where water mains had been replaced or new meters installed, city officials still do little to...

How to protect yourself from lead exposure in drinking water

December 18, 2018 at 3:11 a.m.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no safe level of lead exposure. Lead is especially harmful to children. While...

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