Illinois legislation would set EJ rules around construction

Read the full story at Recycling Today.

The state of Illinois is considering legislation that would create a path for communities to become designated as environmental justice (EJ) communities.

Illinois Senate Bill 1323 and its sister legislation, House Bill 2520, would create require the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) to annually review underlying data that would be used to determine whether a community could qualify as an EJ community.

In areas that are EJ communities, the legislation also would require developers of facilities that would be a major emissions source subject to the Clean Air Act to submit an EJ assessment identifying the potential environmental impacts to the area near the project, according to a summary of HB 2520.