Trump Tower found to be public nuisance
What follows is Press Release by Friends of Chicago River. I am pleased to have been one of those who blew the whistle on these violations and helped prosecute them in court.
Judge Rules Trump International Violated Illinois Environmental Protection Act
1 of 5 9/12/24, 10:22
Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thaddeus L. Wilson ruled Monday that the Trump International
Hotel & Tower violated and is in violation of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act and
committed a continuing public nuisance through a series of failures to comply with state and
federal law dating back to 2008. The judge ruled that the evidence was uncontested that Trump
Tower, operating as 401 N. Wabash, is liable on all remaining counts brought by Friends of the
Chicago River, the Sierra Club, Illinois Chapter, and the State of Illinois in this long-running
litigation.
Friends, the Sierra Club, and the Illinois Attorney General filed the lawsuit in 2018 after Friends
and the Sierra Club discovered the Trump Tower cooling water intake permit violations during a
routine permit review. The Trump Tower can draw in up to about 21 million gallons of water from
the Chicago River every day to cool the building. Trump Tower ignored and violated federal and
state laws and regulations that require buildings using systems like Trump Tower’s to be
designed to minimize impacts on aquatic life, secure permits, operate with protective measures
that minimize damage to fish and other aquatic organisms from water intake structures, and
prevent harmful heat pollution from its discharges back to the river. A 2018 Chicago Tribune
survey found no other cooling intake permits holders had similarly violated the applicable rules.
The Trump Tower is one of the largest users of water from the Chicago River for cooling and
failing to follow the permit requirements resulted in the death of thousands of fish and other
aquatic organisms which were sucked into the building cooling system by the intake structure or
trapped against its screens. The Trump Tower also failed to accurately compute and report the
rate at which the skyscraper’s cooling system withdraws water by approximately 44% for more
than 10 years. By ruling on the summary judgment, Judge Wilson found that the Trump Tower
could not even genuinely dispute that it was in violation of the applicable laws and creating a
public nuisance.
“Judge Wilson’s decision brings us close to the end of a six-year journey to bring justice to the
wildlife for whom these laws were designed to protect and the people who enjoy this wildlife,”
said Margaret Frisbie, Friends of the Chicago River’s executive director. “The Trump Tower’s
complete disregard for the rules carelessly killed countless creatures and degraded the value of
the significant public investments over decades to bring about the healthy transformation of the
river for people, fish, and other aquatic wildlife.”
“The recovery of the Chicago River into the healthy heart of our downtown is a major
accomplishment for the people of Chicago and the Clean Water Act,” said Sierra Club Illinois
Director Jack Darin. “Trump Tower openly violated the Clean Water Act for years, putting the
river and the wildlife that call it home at risk. We’re proud to hold these scofflaws accountable,
and applaud our pro bono attorneys and the Attorney General for stepping up to protect our river
and its recovery.”
Friends of the Chicago River and Sierra Club, Illinois Chapter are represented in this action by
Albert Ettinger; the Abrams Environmental Law Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School;
and the Environmental Advocacy Center at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. Rob
Weinstock of the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law argued the case for Friends of the Chicago
River and Sierra Club.
“Friends and Sierra Club look forward to further proceedings that will determine how best to
restore and protect the Chicago River and uphold the Clean Water Act and the Illinois
Environmental Protection Act,” said Frisbie.
Comentários