CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — As her time in office winds down, Mayor Lori Lightfoot issued an extensive executive order that she said will move the city toward more environmental justice for all Chicagoans.
The order requires that the City considers the impact of its operations on the environment, and it would establish better procedures for getting community input on environmental decisions. It also formally established a community advisory body and an interagency working group.
During proceedings involving potentially polluting industrial operations, the City was sometimes accused of not consulting the community enough.
Perhaps the most notable of those proceedings concerned the fate of a controversial metal recycling facility operated by Southside Recycling — formerly known as General Iron.
In 2022, the Lightfoot Administration denied the company’s permit to open a new facility on the Southeast Side after residents argued that Southside Recycling was responsible for polluting Lincoln Park. It’s possible that the facility will still open, though, if an administrative law judge sides with lawyers who said the City didn’t follow its own rules in denying the permit.
In a statement released Wednesday, the mayor said there remains years of work to go, but she said the City is laying the groundwork for remedying the harms of pollution in the communities that have been most impacted.
The Daily Line reported that this is the mayor’s 15th executive order. It’s unclear how or whether Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson will deal with any of them.
Come Monday, Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson will be making such decisions, but he welcomed Lightfoot's order.
He said in a statement that his administration will build on his predecessor's progress and that he will always be steadfast in the commitment to environmental justice.
"This victory would not be possible without the tenacity of grassroots organizers and community members who have long fought for environmental justice and holding the city accountable."
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