Pritzker, Dems owe us action

Articles in the Tribune make me wonder when Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Democrats have abandoned the environment. Air quality is compromised by ozone and wildfire smoke, the country is in a stifling heat wave, there are water shortages in the Southwest, everyone pretty much agrees climate change is a problem and yet there are stories on projects that threaten the environment.

Adding two toll lanes to Interstate 55 would increase traffic congestion and air pollution. Working-class neighborhoods like Little Village, already suffering from air quality issues, would be further put at risk. This is a bad idea.

How can the state even allow the high-risk drilling project in central Illinois to store tons of carbon dioxide underground? Drillers have worked 24 hours a day, and according to the Tribune (“‘They’ve created chaos,’ ” July 24), farm families living right across the road were not informed nor consulted. There are significant safety issues with pipelines transporting carbon dioxide from all over the country to be stored in Illinois.

And then there is the Lake County Forest Preserve District plan to give 52 acres of open space in the Waukegan Savanna to create an extended runway with a price tag of more than $180 million for a handful of corporate jets, which produce 14 times more pollution per passenger than commercial passenger planes. And at the same time, the governor and Democratic majorities in the legislature didn’t approve converting the abandoned Route 53 right of way into a state park, which would improve air quality.

I urge Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Democratic Party to refocus on the core principles of the party, stand up for the environment and not bow to big corporate and big labor interests. All these anti-environment projects should be stopped right now.

— Bill Morris, retired Democratic state senator and mayor of Waukegan