The holidays are a popular season to bring home a pet, but that impulse can leave consumers vulnerable to a growing number of online scams, according to an alert issued this week by the Better Business Bureau.
Stories by alex ruppenthal
A Look Inside Sue the T. Rex’s New ‘Private Suite’ at The Field Museum
Dec 19, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Sue’s new digs present the dinosaur in a more authentic light using technology that has come a long way since the T. Rex skeleton arrived in Chicago more than 20 years ago.
EPA Issues Violation Against Southeast Side Manganese Polluter
Dec 18, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
After finding high levels of brain-damaging manganese near Watco Transloading’s facility on the Southeast Side of Chicago, the EPA has accused the company of violating the Clean Air Act.
Rauner to Michigan Gov. Snyder: Let’s Use Asian Carp Funding Now, Not Later
Dec 17, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Michigan offered to give Illinois $8 million to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes. But Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has a different idea about how to spend the money.
City Issues 4 Violations to Southeast Side Manganese Polluter
Dec 14, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Watco Transloading faces up to $20,000 in city fines for failing to control emissions of brain-damaging manganese from its storage facility along the Calumet River.
Regulators Test Water at 70 Homes Near Sterigenics in Willowbrook
Dec 13, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Water testing at homes in suburban Willowbrook is the latest step in the response to concerns over the release of dangerous ethylene oxide gas by Sterigenics International.
EPA Finds High Levels of Manganese at Another Southeast Side Facility
Dec 12, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
As regulators continue to monitor manganese emissions at S.H. Bell Co., new air monitoring data shows alarming levels of the brain-damaging heavy metal near another industrial facility in the area.
McDonald’s to Cut Use of Antibiotics in Beef Products
Dec 11, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
After years of pressure from public health advocates, the Chicago-based burger chain announces a plan to reduce the use of antibiotics in its beef products.
City Animal Shelter Waives Fees for Holiday Adoptions
Dec 10, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
With its building “full to the brim” with cats and dogs, Chicago’s municipal-run animal shelter is waiving adoption fees for those looking to bring home a new pet this holiday season.
Group to Assign Mayoral Candidates ‘Paw Ratings’ on Animal Welfare Issues
Dec 7, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Fix Chicago 2019 aims to end the killing of shelter pets in Chicago. The first task of the new group? Taking inventory of where candidates running for city office stand on various animal welfare issues.
Trump EPA Looks to Weaken Regulations for New Coal Plants
Dec 6, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The Trump administration is taking another swing at coal regulations, announcing that it plans to ditch an Obama-era rule that set pollution limits for new coal-fired power plants.
MWRD Selects Veteran Staffer Brian Perkovich as New Executive Director
Dec 5, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The appointment of Brian Perkovich as head of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago comes five months after the abrupt – and unexplained – resignation of David St. Pierre.
VW Settlement: Illinois Awards $19M for Cleaner Bus and Train Engines
Dec 4, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The first chunk of Illinois’ windfall from the Volkswagen emissions lawsuit settlement will fund cleaner-burning bus and train engines for CTA, Metra, Pace and other agencies.
Lawmakers Aim to Close EPA Loopholes in Wake of Sterigenics Scare
Dec 3, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
After reports of a dangerous gas being emitted from several suburban industrial sites, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth and other lawmakers have introduced a bill that would force the EPA to more quickly disclose similar public health risks.
Advocates Call For End to ‘Reckless Overuse’ of Antibiotics in Meat
Nov 30, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Medical professionals and public health advocates in Illinois are calling on lawmakers to pass legislation to curb limiting what they say is a “reckless overuse” of antibiotics in meat-producing animals.
Illinois Lawmakers Override Rauner to Enact Urban Agriculture Law
Nov 29, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Illinois lawmakers have voted overwhelmingly to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of a bill to establish urban agriculture zones that advocates say could help break up food deserts in Chicago and other Illinois cities.
Chicago Rat Study Shows Correlation Between Rental Units and Rodents
Nov 28, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Chicago’s recent designation as the country’s “rat capital” can be attributed in large part, a new study finds, to a particular type of home: rental units.
Cost of Plan to Block Asian Carp from Great Lakes Balloons to $778M
Nov 27, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Additional engineering and design work has more than doubled the cost of a long-awaited plan to prevent invasive Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes, according to federal officials.
City Animal Shelter to Get $1.5 Million Upgrade for Medical Unit
Nov 26, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The renovated medical and surgery areas at Chicago Animal Care and Control will replace the shelter’s existing medical unit, which is more than 20 years old.
Study: Drivers Traveled 1.9M Extra Miles Due to Closed City Emission Test Sites
Nov 21, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
A new analysis shows that closing Chicago's final two vehicle emissions testing facilities came at a cost to hundreds of thousands of city drivers, with the biggest impact on low-income and minority drivers.
Air Pollution Reduces Life Expectancy by Nearly 2 Years, Study Finds
Nov 20, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Air pollution’s impact on life expectancy exceeds that of communicable diseases such as AIDS, cigarette smoking and even war, according to a first-of-its-kind study from the University of Chicago.
Study: Chicago Not Only City in Illinois Struggling to Boost Recycling Rate
Nov 19, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Chicago’s recycling woes have been well-documented, but a new report shows that at least five other cities in Illinois are failing to meet average U.S. recycling rates.
Lincoln Park Zoo Opens New $9.3 Million Visitor Center
Nov 16, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
A movie theater-sized screen highlighting daily programs, plus gardens and a member center will provide additional comforts and services to visitors, the zoo says.
Chicago Park District Fails to Background Check Many Volunteers, Investigation Finds
Nov 15, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Investigators described the Park District’s procedures for vetting volunteers as “outdated” and “under-resourced,” with a single employee responsible for managing the entire volunteer program.
Illinois Senate Weighs Bill to Limit Antibiotics in Meat
Nov 14, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Lawmakers are set to consider legislation this week that would limit the use of antibiotics in food-producing animals, a practice that has been shown to fuel drug-resistant bacteria that can be dangerous to humans.
Lincoln Park Zoo Hosts Conference on Reintroducing Endangered Species
Nov 13, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
Conservationists from around the world are gathering this week to focus on saving threatened species and reintroducing them into the wild.