Full Text of SR0105 102nd General Assembly
SR0105 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, According to the U.S. Environmental Protection | 3 | | Agency (EPA), waste rotting in landfills can result in high | 4 | | emissions of methane gas, a precursor gas of the harmful air | 5 | | pollutant tropospheric ozone; additionally, methane is an | 6 | | ignitable gas and a contributor to global warming; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois Environmental Council and the | 8 | | Illinois Environmental Protection Agency report that there are | 9 | | currently 42 landfills in Illinois; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The alternative to collecting waste in a landfill | 11 | | is often incinerating waste in a furnace; certain sites in | 12 | | Illinois, such as the site in the city of Clinton, incinerate | 13 | | potentially harmful medical waste only; other sites, such as | 14 | | the site in Sauget, east of St. Louis, incinerate both | 15 | | hazardous and nonhazardous waste; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Incinerating waste is often thought to be the | 17 | | remedy to landfills and their harmful by-products; however, | 18 | | burning waste has its own host of malefactors as burning | 19 | | plastics produces toxic substances called dioxins; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, The World Health Organization notes that dioxins | 21 | | are highly toxic; they can cause reproductive and |
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| 1 | | developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere | 2 | | with hormones, and cause cancer; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, RecyclingBins.Co.UK notes that gases from | 4 | | incineration cause air pollution and contribute to a | 5 | | phenomenon called acid rain, where the rain's pH balance is | 6 | | askew, which can harm natural wildlife, forestry, aquaponics, | 7 | | and agriculture; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency also | 9 | | notes that ashes of incineration often carry heavy metals and | 10 | | toxins that can make surrounding ground water carcinogenic; | 11 | | and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Carcinogenic ground water often contains chemical | 13 | | compounds known as nitrates which, when ingested by humans, | 14 | | are converted naturally into nitrites, which can dramatically | 15 | | reduce the blood's ability to carry oxygen; nitrates are | 16 | | especially harmful to children and infants under 6 months; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, According to the Illinois Environmental Council, | 18 | | Illinois' current recycling programs divert over 7 million | 19 | | tons of useful materials from landfills and save enough energy | 20 | | to heat and light 578,000 homes; additionally, recycling in | 21 | | Illinois reduces water pollution by 21,500 tons of various | 22 | | contaminants and reduces air pollution by 131,000 tons of |
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| 1 | | various contaminants each year; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Recycling in our homes, our schools, and our | 3 | | workplaces can help reduce the amount of waste that is | 4 | | transferred to landfill sites; reducing the amount of waste we | 5 | | produce can have positive effects on our communities and our | 6 | | State; therefore, be it
| 7 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL | 8 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare April 19 to | 9 | | April 22, 2021 as Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Week.
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