EPA Research in Illinois

Explore EPA's research across the United States.

EPA researchers are working hard to protect communities across the nation. Learn about some of the work EPA researchers are doing in Illinois.

Cleaner Air: How EPA Researchers are Addressing Air Pollution at Chicago Area Schools
Air Sensor Loan Programs: Promoting Air Quality Education
Potential for Stormwater Reuse: Investigation of Water Quality and Treatment
Lesson Plans: Using Air Sensors to Teach About Air Quality
DIY Air Sensor Available for Educators and Citizen Scientists
EPA Researchers Help Water Systems Keep Lead out of Drinking Water
Nutrient Sensor Action: Data and Decisions to Manage Excess Nutrients
Blowing Smoke: Firefighters and Chemical Exposure During a Fire
Tackling the Ozone Issue on Lake Michigan’s Shores
Near-road Air Pollution Exposure in Vulnerable Student Populations
Health Impact Assessment for Neighborhood Revitalization

For more EPA work, see EPA in Illinois.

Cleaner Air: How EPA Researchers are Addressing Air Pollution at Chicago Area Schools

Roadside trees and foliage can clean air by trapping pollutants on leaves and branches or forcing air up and away from people. EPA researchers are working with partners in the Chicago metropolitan area to study how these types of vegetative barriers can help improve air quality inside and outside of schools. Read Sowing Seeds for Cleaner Air: How EPA Researchers are Addressing Air Pollution at Chicago Area Schools.

Air Sensor Loan Programs: Promoting Air Quality Education

As interest in local air quality increases, so does the demand for air sensors—the smaller, lower cost, non-regulatory technologies that measure air quality. However, air sensors are not always accessible to everyone. EPA worked with the Los Angeles Public Library to start a pilot air sensor loan program that then expanded to the Midwest, to provide local communities in the Chicago area with access to air sensors and guidance on using them. Read Air Sensor Loan Programs: Promoting Air Quality Education by Bringing Sensors to You!

Potential for Stormwater Reuse: Investigation of Water Quality and Treatment

Managing stormwater runoff is a complex environmental challenge for communities across the country. One potential option? Reuse. EPA researchers collaborated with partners on a project to evaluate samples from stormwater collection systems that could potentially be harvested for landscaping and agricultural irrigation near Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Minneapolis. Read Advancing the Potential for Stormwater Reuse: Investigation of Water Quality and Treatment.

Lesson Plans: Using Air Sensors to Teach About Air Quality

Check out the hands-on lesson plans designed by EPA scientists and collaborators to encourage air quality education in communities and classrooms. Using air sensor technology, participants of all ages can use information in their own communities to explore real-time air quality and air pollution concepts. The Morton Arboretum in Illinois expanded on one lesson plan and hosted a teacher workshop that trained 40 educators on the air quality education resources. Read Five Hands-on Lesson Plans: Using Air Sensors to Teach About Air Quality.

DIY Air Sensor Available for Educators and Citizen Scientists

Interested in a DIY project that will help you learn about air quality? EPA researchers have published instructions for building a portable, battery-powered air sensor, called the AirMapper, which can be used for educational outreach activities. In Chicago, EPA worked with the Jane Addams Elementary School and provided AirMappers to teachers and students for use in collecting air quality data in their neighborhood. Read DIY Air Sensor Now Available for Use by Educators and Citizen Scientists.

EPA Researchers Help Water Systems Keep Lead out of Drinking Water

If a system has lead service lines, limiting corrosion is a necessary step to reduce lead exposure from drinking water. Water systems in EPA’s Region 5 - comprised of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio - shared lead service line pipes and water quality data with EPA researchers. EPA and others used predictive solubility models to help drinking water systems pick the right corrosion control treatment for their system’s individual needs. Read EPA Researchers Help Water Systems Keep Lead out of Drinking Water.

Nutrient Sensor Action: Data and Decisions to Manage Excess Nutrients

Excess nutrients are one of our country’s most widespread and challenging water quality problems. EPA and partners are focused on improving nutrient management by incentivizing the development of low-cost technology solutions such as nutrient sensors. EPA awarded three groups funding to support nutrient management, one team in Illinois. Read Nutrient Sensor Action Challenge Winners: Data and Decisions to Manage Excess Nutrients.

Blowing Smoke: Firefighters and Chemical Exposure During a Fire

EPA researchers are working to better understand firefighters’ chemical exposure and protect their health. As part of a collaborative study with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the University of Illinois Fire Service Institute, researchers analyzed firefighters’ breath samples to assess their exposure to volatile organic compounds. Read Blowing Smoke: What Can Firefighters’ Breath Reveal About Chemical Exposure During a Fire?

Tackling the Ozone Issue on Lake Michigan’s Shores

EPA scientists are collaborating with multiple agencies for the Lake Michigan Ozone Study--a field study aimed at better understanding ozone chemistry and meteorology along the Illinois-Wisconsin Lake Michigan shoreline using a combination of aircraft, ground-based, and ship-based measurements. Read By Air, Land and Sea: Tackling the Ozone Issue on Lake Michigan’s Shores.

Near-road Air Pollution Exposure in Vulnerable Student Populations

EPA researchers worked with partners in Illinois to use the Agency-developed EnviroAtlas and the report Recommendations for Constructing Roadside Vegetation Barriers to Improve Near-Road Air Quality to improve air quality for schools located near major roadways. EPA scientists consulted with the partners on using green infrastructure to mitigate near-road air pollutant exposure in vulnerable student populations, provided a virtual demonstration of EnviroAtlas, and developed a list of factors for partners to consider for identifying and prioritizing schools that may benefit from vegetative barriers to improve air quality.

Health Impact Assessment for Neighborhood Revitalization

EPA Office of Research and Development, in collaboration with the EPA Region 5, worked with the City of Rockford, IL to conduct a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) that analyzed how to perform neighborhood revitalization in a way that maximizes health benefits for residents. The HIA focused on avoiding gentrification and negative social consequences for community members while seeking to preserve cultural values and improve quality of life and public health.