Illinois International Port District leaders are asking for funding to bring the port’s infrastructure back into shape. (WTTW News)
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Erik Varela of the Illinois International Port District said the port brings in steel, iron, concrete and sand. “If the port were to go away or not be invested in, you have to imagine that those commodities are going to go elsewhere, those jobs and those things will go there.”

This photo provided by Mike Shane shows Shane as he stands in his corn field near Peoria, Ill., Tuesday, June 27, 2023. By now, the corn stalks should be 10 feet high. Instead, they’re barely up to Shane’s waist. (Mack Foster / Mike Shane via AP)

Experts say the drought in the central U.S. is the worst since at least 2012, and in some areas, is drawing comparisons to the 1988 drought that devastated corn, wheat and soybean crops.

A smoky haze settles over Chicago due to Canadian wildfires on June 27, 2023. (WTTW News)

According to data from the Illinois EPA, Chicago’s Air Quality Index was at a 185 as of Thursday morning, placing it in the “unhealthy” range. That means older adults, people with heart or lung disease and children and teens should avoid strenuous outdoor activities.

A decommissioned generating station in Waukegan is pictured in a file photo. (WTTW News)
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Right now, coal combustion residuals – commonly known as coal ash – aren’t subject to EPA regulation at many offline power plants. 

A smoky haze settles over Chicago due to Canadian wildfires on June 27, 2023. (Paris Schutz / WTTW News)

Air quality hit unhealthy levels, with the Department of Public Health encouraging people to limit their time outdoors and avoid strenuous activities.

Rocky the coyote in his old enclosure at River Trail Nature Center. (Chicago Alliance for Animals)

The coyote’s new home is 10 times larger than his old one, but animal rights activists still want Rocky transferred to an animal sanctuary.

(Pexels / 현덕 김)

Thousands of bees settled in Daley Plaza this week, but the prize for craziest infestation goes to tiny Elko, Nev., which has been overrun by millions of crickets.

(Pexels / Pixabay)

Individual pool schedules will be posted to the district’s website.

(WTTW News)

A 19-year-old woman was seen struggling in the water Wednesday night.

(WTTW News)

The impact of climate change is being felt across the planet in ways large and small. But it is increasingly clear that the impact of climate change is not felt equally.

(WTTW News)

The drowning was the second in a week along the Northwest Indiana lakefront. Chicago police are also investigating the death of a man pulled from the lake near Rogers Park. 

Kate Jungiewicz, an animal care specialist at Brookfield Zoo, feeds Arnieta, a pregnant 16-year-old reticulated giraffe, prophylactic antibiotics hidden between leaf lettuce. (Jim Schulz / CZS-Brookfield Zoo)

Brookfield Zoo has really big news to share: It’s on baby watch for a new giraffe. Arnieta, a 16-year-old reticulated giraffe, is due to deliver sometime between mid-July and late August, according to zoo officials.

(S_UM_A / Pixabay)

Thunderstorms are as much a part of the rhythm of summer in Chicago as cookouts, baseball and street festivals. And they’ve been missing in 2023.

(Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

According to the National Weather Service, conditions continue to deteriorate across Northeast Illinois, with the Chicago metro area experiencing the most significant rainfall deficits. 

Lake Michigan, at a high-water mark in 2019. (WTTW News)

Drew Gronewold, an expert in hydrological modeling at the University of Michigan, presented his annual update on Great Lakes’ water levels. Lake Michigan is holding steady, but for how long?

Lake Michigan is pictured in a file photo. (WTTW News)

The boy went missing in the water near the Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk Beach in Indiana. This marks the seventh drowning in Lake Michigan in 2023.