For Leon Corzine of Assumption, north of Pana, atrazine is as essential to farming as soil, water or sun. Corzine, along with wife Susie and son Craig, is a fifth-generation farmer who grows corn and soybeans and owns Angus cattle. Corzine relies on atrazine, a weed-killer used by Illinois farmers for 50 years. When atrazine […]
Diane Ivey
Posted inArts & Culture
Stop, drop and roll
Hello! I’m back. I’ve been spending a lot of time at the Capitol lately, and thus haven’t been able to blog. Anyway, I hope some of you have heard this NPR piece about Slow Death by Rubber Duck. If you haven’t, here’s a quick recap: two Canadian environmentalists spent two years monitoring the amount of […]
Posted inNews
Let the sunshine in
Investing in solar energy could bring the state as many as 17,000 new jobs, one environmental expert says. As the fifth largest producer and consumer of electricity, Illinois is not living up to its sun-harnessing potential. The state is seriously behind on solar energy, the Illinois Environmental Council says, especially when compared to other large […]
Posted inNews
Permit process slows down manufacturers
After a two-year permit process, U.S. Steel Corp. finalized a $750 million project in Granite City, Ill., last October. In Alabama, a similar project’s permit only took six months to clear. Katy Lawrence of U.S. Steel says an extended permit process can cost companies like hers a great deal of time and money. For manufacturers […]
Posted inNews
Low marks for state’s infrastructure
The state’s infrastructure earned failing grades in a report issued last week by the Illinois chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers. If the situation does not improve, civil engineers say, drivers may see more potholes on roads and highways, train travelers may experience more delays while waiting for tracks to clear and farmers […]
Posted inNews
A tough time to be a kid
A 10-year-old girl started pulling out her hair because she was so concerned about her family’s economic security. A teenage boy pleaded with his parents to let him drop out of school so he could work and support his struggling family. Kathy Ryg, president of Voices for Illinois Children, has heard dozens of stories like […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Green Links 2/12: Dear Livejournal …
This week has been crazy! I’ve been doing a lot of running around and going back-and-forth between our main office and the Capitol. (I also locked my keys in my car yesterday. That turned into a two-hour debacle with lots of ridiculous circumstances and oh god I don’t wanna talk about it.) Hence, I haven’t […]
Posted inNews
Composting digs deep into sustainability
Autumn leaves, the contents of your hamster’s cage and last week’s chicken wings may not seem like a recipe for success, but together they form the perfect combination of waste for a backyard compost pile. For Ken Dunn, founder and director of the Chicago-based Resource Center, leaves, wood shavings and food waste are essential ingredients […]
Posted inArts & Culture
All the Small Things
Yesterday, I went to the Compost Symposium at the State Fairgrounds. It was super interesting, and I wish I could’ve stayed for all the workshops. (Yeah so I like compost and worms and stuff. Deal.) You can read all about it in this week’s edition, but I just wanted to share some wisdom from the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Energy-saving tips and tricks: Day Five
I’m not going to lie, I’ll probably spend a fair portion of my weekend doing laundry. It may not be glamorous or exciting (as glamorous and exciting as this town gets when I saw a bartender wearing overalls last Friday night – step it up, Springfield!) but I have a pile of dirty clothes that […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Energy-saving tips and tricks: Day Four
Did you catch my mallards story in today’s paper? I hope so. I had a lot of fun writing and researching it. Who knew people studied ducks so intensely? Anyway, here’s Tip #4: use a humidifier. As I’m sure you know, everything dries out in the winter: your skin, your sinuses and even the air […]
