From Field to Stream: Water Pollution in Illinois
Over the last 27 years, Illinois has generally seen some of its most heavily polluted streams improve. Waterways that were devoid of aquatic life and unsafe for recreation once again support fishing and swimming.
These water quality improvements can be traced to the implementation of the Clean Water Act of 1972 and the public's insistence that water pollution be cleaned up.
Since 1972 most efforts to clean up Illinois' waters have focused on the easiest to identify "point sources" such as industries and municipal sewage plants that release pollutants directly into rivers. There has been a large amount of progress in addressing these sources, but little progress in checking the effects of polluted runoff, particularly from agricultural lands.
In examining national water quality trends over the past 25 years, the U.S. Geological Survey stated, "Four times as many streams deteriorated as improved. This trend is consistent with increased polluted runoff from agriculture" (D.P. Lettenmaier et al., "Trends in Stream Quality in the Continental United States, 1978-1987," as quoted in Adler, The Clean Water Act 20 Years Later).
Polluted runoff comes from a variety of sources -- stormwater from roads and parking lots, treated lawns and golf courses, and agricultural lands.
Polluted agricultural runoff includes the excess nutrients from fertilizers, siltation from soil erosion, animal wastes, herbicides and pesticides applied to fields such as atrazine and alachlor. In Illinois and across the nation, agriculture is by far the largest contributor of polluted runoff.
Polluted agricultural runoff and the associated problems
• According to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA),
over 85 percent of the impaired river miles in Illinois are polluted
by agricultural runoff.
• Extensive use of chemical fertilizers has plagued Illinois' water supplies with nitrates and nitrites. Virtually every drinking water supply in central Illinois fails to meet nitrate/nitrite drinking water standards at some time during the course of the year. Occurrences increase in fall and spring, when most agricultural chemicals are applied.
• Excessive nitrates and nitrites in drinking water can cause "blue baby syndrome," a condition which results from the decreased oxygen carrying capacity in an infant's bloodstream.
• The widespread use of chemical fertilizers in the Midwest is leading to excessive levels of nutrients in our waters, creating conditions for enormous algae blooms. Algae can be toxic and cause oxygen levels to drop below that necessary to support marine life. In the Mississippi River Basin, excess nutrients have created an algae bloom responsible for a 6,000 square mile "Dead Zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Herbicide and pesticide use has increased substantially since the early 1960s. By the early 1990s, "more than 96 percent of all cropland in Illinois was treated for weeds at least once a year" (Illinois Department of Natural Resources, "CTAP Summary"). Drinking water samples from around the state occasionally contain pesticides like atrazine and alachlor.
• In addition to excessive nutrients and other agricultural chemicals, our rivers are choked with sediment due to soil erosion from farm lands. The product of the first Governor's Conference on the Management of the Illinois River System in 1987, the Illinois River Action Plan, ranked "soil erosion and siltation" as the top-priority item for the Illinois River and stated that "sedimentation, today's major pollutant of our nation's agricultural waterways, is the primary obstacle in preserving some semblance of the historic Illinois River for future generations."
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimates that, over the past 35 years, it has dredged more than 14 million cubic yards of sediment from the Illinois River alone. That is enough to cover 138 square miles of land with one inch of valuable topsoil.
• Lakes in Illinois are slowly filling in with the soil that erodes from farm lands, resulting in a significant loss of water storage capacity. Some lakes in central Illinois, like Lake Decatur, have lost as much as 30 percent of their original storage capacity. Such losses diminish the amount of water available in times of drought and reduce the capacity of reservoirs to contain flood waters.
How has the agricultural industry become the primary polluter
of Illinois waters?
Initially, the environmental protection agencies and the public
focused on industrial and municipal pollution. The Clean Water
Act empowered states to address polluted runoff, but these provisions
were largely ignored. Illinois has relied instead on programs
that encourage voluntary participation tied to financial incentives
to reduce polluted agricultural runoff. These measures have no
method of ensuring accountability from polluters.
Tens of millions of dollars have been spent on voluntary programs to address polluted agricultural runoff, but the problems continue. While pollution from municipalities and traditional industries has largely decreased, polluted runoff from the agriculture industry has increased.
One reason for this is the far-reaching power of the Illinois Farm Bureau. The Illinois Farm Bureau has used tactics to stall progress and divert attention away from polluted agricultural runoff. Illinois Farm Bureau has also fought measures that would hold the agricultural industry accountable for polluted agricultural runoff, resisted enforcement of current laws, and undermined existing clean water policy.
It is the purpose of these fact sheets to bring to light the policies and activities of the Illinois Farm Bureau, to invite unbiased scrutiny of these policies and activities, and to encourage public debate of the Illinois Farm Bureau.
How to contact Prairie Rivers Network:
Phone: 217-344-2371
Fax: 217-344-2381
Web: http://prairierivers.org
E-mail: info@prairierivers.org
Mail: 809 South Fifth Street, Champaign, IL 61820
