Prairie Rivers Network

Illinois is receiving more than $75 million through Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help reclaim and revitalize abandoned mine lands across the state — including the Metro East.

The Illinois Pollution Control Board adopted rules governing how power plants close coal ash ponds that contain toxic waste on Thursday. The new rules require power plant operators to consider a range of options and allow public comments.

The implosion caps the final parts of the defunct coal power plant's demolition, which started in 2019.

More than half of Illinois' 23 coal plants are closed, and five more will be shuttered this decade. Without clear rules for demolitions, activists say more environmental problems are likely to occur.

The main building of the defunct coal plant came down Monday morning, but a last-minute change in demolition plans means three smokestacks remain standing.

They’re worried Madison County will see a repeat of what happened in Chicago last year, when a similar demolition sent a large cloud of dust over one of the city’s neighborhoods.