Chicago’s toxic air

TRIBUNE WATCHDOG REPORT: Chicago-area residents face some of the highest risk of getting sick from pollution, but the EPA isn’t making it widely known.

What I admire most about this story on the toxic air in Chicago can be found in the video (at bottom of post): Leila Mendez, who had the chance to move away from the problem, chose to stay and fight for clean air for the sake of the area’s kids. Brava!

People living in Chicago and nearby suburbs face some of the highest risks in the nation for cancer, lung disease and other health problems linked to toxic chemicals pouring from industry smokestacks, according to a Tribune analysis of federal data.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency spent millions of dollars to assess the dangers that air pollution poses but has failed to fulfill promises to make the research more accessible to the public. So the Tribune is posting the information on its Web site, where users can easily find nearby polluters and the chemicals going into their air.

Those who look up Cook County will see it ranked worst in the nation for dangerous air pollution, based on 2005 data. The Tribune also found Chicago was among the 10 worst cities in the U.S.

The factory with the highest risk score in Chicago is a steel mill on the edge of upscale Lincoln Park, a neighborhood where it isn’t uncommon to find people buying organic dog food.

In Will and DuPage Counties, six factories rank in the region’s worst 50, though residents of the collar counties generally face much lower risks than people who live in Cook. Nearby Lake County, Ind., has nine of the worst polluters in the region.

So how much danger does a person living near these factories face? The EPA didn’t try to answer that difficult question. Air pollution is just one factor that can affect the chances of developing health problems.

Link to full story.

Video: Click on pic of video below and you’ll be taken to page, scroll down for vid.