It’s Watershed-Wide & A National Guide!
Anacostia Watershed First Multi-jurisdictional, Coal Tar Free Watershed in US First was the District of Columbia’s ban in 2008 under the leadership of Councilmember Mary Cheh. This was followed by Montgomery County’s ban sponsored by Councilmember Craig Rice in 2012. This was Maryland’s first ban. Now in April 2015, Prince George’s County, MD passed a […]
Community Honors Service of Officials Who Banned Coal Tar Sealers
The Village of Winnetka, IL, which passed a hard-fought ban of coal tar pavement sealers in 2014, tonight will honor two outgoing trustees for their service to the Village. Properly listed among their accomplishments to make Winnetka a better place was the ban of coal tar. Richard Kates and Arthur Braun, along with the majority […]
New Ban Puts Winnetka on Track Toward a Cleaner Future
Tonight the Village Council of Winnetka stood firm with many of their residents and against heavy lobbying by the coal tar sealer industry. After nearly 2 hours of public comment, they passed a ban of coal tar pavement sealers with a vote of 4 to 1. Winnetka is Illinois’ second community to pass a ban. […]
Illinois Ban Fails…Illinoisans
Late last month the Environmental Committee of the Illinois House of Representatives failed to move the ban of coal tar pavement sealers, HB 4599, forward. With an 8 to 8 vote, the bill was moved to the Rules Committee to most likely die quietly at the end of this session. How can something so simple, […]
Library of Good Coal Tar Reads Now Available
Websites and links come and go and sometimes good information goes with it. So in order to preserve past efforts and make learning about this topic a little easier, a collection of documents is assembled here to assist the reader. Let us know through the contact form if there are kinds of documents you are […]
It’s a ‘Fine’ Time for Illinois to Pass Coal Tar Sealant Ban Legislation
Legislative newcomer, Laura Fine, earlier this month introduced legislation to ban coal tar containing pavement products, aka “sealers,” from sale and use in the entire state beginning next year. The legislation, HB 4599, has the backing of the Illinois Sierra Club and others and is based upon the research completed by the DuPage River/Salt Creek […]
Chicagoland: Home of the Most Toxic Creeks in the US?
In a manner of speaking, yes. While there are many chemical and biological measures of stream health, one carcinogenic constituent, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), are showing up with higher numbers, over a broader area than anywhere else found in the U.S. The land use draining to these creeks are not factories, waste mounds and brownfields, […]
2013 Review: Snowball Effect Grows, But Avalanche Needed
Snowball by Deutsch used with permission The inter-related aspects of coal tar sealant pollution were never more obvious than in the year 2013. Research affected the press, which in turn mobilized citizens and legislators to act in a snowball-like fashion. And the whole time industry tried in vain to melt the snowball as with a […]
Third Installment of MPCA Coal Tar Sealant Webinars: This Week with a Focus on Local Efforts
Parents and students decorate a coal-tar-free parking lot in Grand Rapids, MI. While many may debate whether the old adage that “all politics is local” is true or not, one cannot argue with the influence that everyday citizens and local decision-makers can have in their own communities with coal tar sealant use and pollution. I […]
Coal Tar Sealers Legal in California and Mandatory in One LA Community!!
Last year we demonstrated the extent of coal tar sealant use in California as the state legislature considered a bill to ban coal tar sealants (see Surprising New Info on California Coal Tar Sealant Use). That really was a surprise to many that assumed such an environmentally-proactive state would have banned this nasty product years […]