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"We have the world's best water, and many, many households are drinking it through a toxic straw," said Rachel Havrelock, director of the Freshwater Lab at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The agency said tighter standards would improve IQ scores in children and reduce high blood pressure and heart disease in adults.
An EPA official said that the agency has conducted 578 home re-entry screenings and is continuing air monitoring from 15 stations within the community.
Each day - the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says Americans throw away nearly 70 million plastic foam cups.
CBS 2 Investigator Dorothy Tucker spent the afternoon looking through state and environmental records for the company’s history after the plant fire in LaSalle.
The Environmental Protection Agency is checking air quality at the scene, and there is concern about chemical residue that fell around the area. CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reports.
A metal recycling company in Pilsen that had been ordered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to monitor their levels of pollutants is now getting a stamp of approval. CBS 2's Marybel Gonzalez reports on a continuing controversy surrounding the metal shredder.
Just Transition Northwest Indiana says up to two million tons of coal ash are leaking arsenic, thallium, and other toxins into the lake near Michigan City.
The mayor of University Park says he has had it with Aqua Illinois, the company that supplies the village's water, after dealing with dangerous drinking water for more than a year.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed nearly 1,200 tons of lead and arsenic contaminated soil.
It has been a summertime gathering spot in Hegewisch for more than half a century, but beginning Tuesday, the Little League field in the neighborhood became an active Environmental Protection Agency cleanup site.
Additional funds provided by Congress for Great Lakes environmental improvements will be used to hasten cleanups of highly toxic sites and step up work on other longstanding forms of pollution, federal officials said Thursday.
People have been told not to touch the water in the Burns Waterway.
The river flows 13 miles (21 kilometers) through Gary, East Chicago and Hammond. Steelmaking, meatpacking and oil refining contaminated the river's sediment with heavy metals and PCBs as well as oil and grease.
The man who asked repeatedly for a state investigation into the Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook was remembered Saturday at a vigil in Elmhurst.
In 2016, over 1,000 people were forced from the West Calumet Housing Complex after tests found high lead levels in blood samples from some children and some yards with lead levels over 70 times the U.S. safety standard.
Topping the list is a $1.5 million grant to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
The Illinois EPA is now letting you download reports on your local water system, so you can look at the number of lead service lines.
The EPA estimates that Illinois has 3.7 million water lines. Of those, about 415,000 are made of lead. About 319,000 are made of copper and potentially contain lead solder.
A new report from the state health department revealed a higher than normal number of cases of several cancer types for people living near the Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook.
Sterigenics released the following statement Friday regarding the Illinois Department of Public Health's cancer incidence report.
He battled cancer and fought to get the word out about a dangerous chemical coming from a plant near his home. Matt Haller lost his fight against cancer, but before he died, he wanted to share a message with CBS 2's Dave Savini.
Sterigenics and the EPA released the following statements after the EPA performed air quality tests after the Sterigenics plant was ordered to stop using ethylene oxide.
"People who get exposed to it, they can get cancer at high enough levels."
Calling this an urgent health crisis, Senator Durbin and Senator Tammy Duckworth on Tuesday demanded the EPA find a third-party environmental engineering firm to identify a way to reduce emissions.
CTA did not give an exact time for when the issue will be fixed, but said they are working to restore service as quickly as possible.
Chicago equaled a club record by using nine pitchers in a nine-inning game.
Swalwell faced pressure from his own party to drop out of the race after a former staffer accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was too drunk to consent.
Participants climbed both towers of the Prudential Plaza for a total of 99 floors and nearly 2,500 steps.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland won the 2026 Masters Tournament at Georgia's Augusta National, claiming his second straight green jacket.
Swalwell faced pressure from his own party to drop out of the race after a former staffer accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was too drunk to consent.
President Trump said the U.S. Navy will begin blockading ships from entering or exiting the Strait of Hormuz and intercept vessels that have paid tolls to Iran.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pointed out that gamers "have many of the hard skills it takes to be a successful controller."
Starting in December, eligible men in the U.S. will be automatically registered for the military draft.
An attorney for ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan argued to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday that the former Democratic power broker's conviction on bribery and other corruption charges should be overturned.
A passenger on an American Airlines flight from New York to Chicago has been charged with making a false bomb threat that forced an emergency landing at Detroit Metro Airport last month, according to a federal criminal complaint.
Skyrocketing property taxes continue to be a hot-button issue in Cook County — particularly since last fall, when many residents saw their tax bills increase by 100% or more.
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias this weekend issued a warning about a surge in text messages that falsely claim to come from his office or the DMV within it.
Tenants at a South Loop luxury high-rise that has been plagued with problems like broken elevators are vowing to fight five-day eviction notices.
It's become an annual March Madness tradition at CBS Chicago, pitting our city's best eateries in direct competition in a foodie bracket challenge. We did pizza, we've done Italian beef, we've done Chicago dogs. This year, we're taking flight with wings.
The United States has long struggled with understanding and finding ways to help treat mental illness. A new documentary, which is screening Saturday in Chicago, examines the reality of living with mental illness in America.
Allergy season is here, and the dreaded pollen can trigger sneezing, congestion, wheezing, and shortness of breath.
Northwestern Medicine and the American Red Cross teamed up for a community blood drive in Chicago on Monday morning.
Ending domestic violence is the goal of groups and advocates all over the world, and some experts in Chicago say it is time to become less reactive and more proactive when it comes to the people causing harm.
A new Iowa law bans local nondiscrimination protections on the basis of gender identity after the state became the first in the U.S. to roll back its civil rights code last year.
A new restaurant has joined the busy stretch of Halsted Street toward the south end of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood that is also home to Alinea and Boka.
The federal government is suing Illinois, Connecticut and Arizona over efforts to regulate prediction market operators such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
The owners of the popular Uncommon Ground restaurant, live music venue, and brewery in Chicago's Wrigleyville community announced this week that they're looking for a successor to take over the business.
Chicago consistently ranks in the top three cities in Fortune 500 company headquarters, and now a competition has been launched to build on Chicago's power in business.
The flagship Ann Sather restaurant on Belmont Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview community will be moving later this year, a restaurant representative said Tuesday.
The United States has long struggled with understanding and finding ways to help treat mental illness. A new documentary, which is screening Saturday in Chicago, examines the reality of living with mental illness in America.
Afrika Bambaataa, a rapper and producer, was best known for breakthrough tracks like 1982's "Planet Rock" and for founding the Universal Zulu Nation art collective.
Mozart's "Don Giovanni," the local premiere of the 2022 opera "Omar," and a fresh production of "Guys and Dolls" are among the highlights of the 2026-2027 season for Chicago's Lyric Opera.
Federal magistrate Renee Harris Toliver told Pooh Sheisty that the evidence against him is strong.
A major music festival featuring the rapper formerly known as Kanye West was canceled after the U.K. government blocked Ye from entering the country.
In his Sunday message overlooking St. Peter's Square, the pontiff demanded a ceasefire in Lebanon as Israel ramps up its war against Hezbollah. Pope Leo also urged the international community not to turn its back on Ukraine.
Showers move back into the area with severe storms expected on Tuesday and Wednesday. Meteorologist Kylee Miller has the latest.
The White House announced the U.S. is implementing a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in the wake of the breakdown of face-to-face talks between the U.S. and Iran.
Participants climbed both towers of the Prudential Plaza, a total of 99 floors and nearly 2,500 steps.
Ally of President Trump and veteran Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has conceded defeat in a parliamentary election, ending his 16 years in power.
A woman shot and wounded three men early Sunday on busy Irving Park Road in the Chicago neighborhood of the same name.
The man charged with damaging the vehicles of several Chicago firefighters at multiple locations on Chicago's South Side appeared at a bond hearing on Sunday, where he was ordered held.
The Chicago Department of Transportation said southbound State Street will be closed between Wacker Drive and Randolph Street beginning Monday, April 13.
Divers pulled a man from the water after a car was found submerged in a creek in Morris, Illinois, southwest of Chicago. The man later died.
CTA did not give an exact time for when the issue will be fixed, but said they are working to restore service as quickly as possible.
New proposed Illinois legislation would allow renters or people who can't install massive rooftop panels to also harness the power of the sun.
When a rusty light pole snapped and fell on a woman's car in Bucktown, causing thousands of dollars in damage, she thought the city would pay for it. She was wrong.
Financial exploitation is the leading type of elder abuse in Illinois. One Streamwood woman learned that personally, when her brother took hundreds of thousands of dollars from their parents' financial accounts.
One year after a teenage girl was shot outside her home in Country Club Hills, Illinois, and was told she would never walk again, she continued to defy the odds and reclaim her independence.
A Morgan Park family is still in shock after a staggering 300% spike in their latest property tax bill, and the man poised to take over as Cook County Assessor at the end of the year says it's an error he wants to make sure doesn't happen again.
Chicago equaled a club record by using nine pitchers in a nine-inning game.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland won the 2026 Masters Tournament at Georgia's Augusta National, claiming his second straight green jacket.
Chicago had been 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position before Busch's single after going 1 of 23 in the previous two losses to Pittsburgh.
The Chicago Sky have acquired Rickea Jackson from the Los Angeles Sparks in a trade for Ariel Atkins.
Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar left in the second period after he was hit in the face by a puck.
A man was killed this weekend in a shooting in the south Chicago suburb of Oak Forest.
Chicago police on Sunday were investigating a shooting in the Back of the Yards neighborhood involving a teen riding a scooter.
The man charged with damaging the vehicles of several Chicago firefighters at multiple locations on Chicago's South Side appeared at a bond hearing on Sunday, where he was ordered held.
Chicago police early Sunday were investigating a shooting that left a woman dead in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood.
A woman shot and wounded three men early Sunday on busy Irving Park Road in the Chicago neighborhood of the same name.
