October 20, 2025
Toxic Coal Ash in Illinois: Addressing Coal Plants’ Hazardous Legacy
For many decades, utilities dumped billions of tons of coal ash — the toxic substance left after burning coal — in unlined ponds, landfills, and mines where the toxic pollution leaks into water and soil.
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Across the U.S., immense coal ash dumps are leaking hazardous chemicals including arsenic, chromium, lead, lithium, radium, and other heavy metals, which have been linked to numerous types of cancer, heart and thyroid disease, respiratory illness, reproductive failure, and neurological harm. In addition to those well-known health threats, in 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency acknowledged that coal ash contains levels of arsenic and radiation that pose cancer risks.
Coal ash remains one of our nation’s largest toxic industrial waste streams. U.S. coal plants continue to produce approximately 70 million tons every year. Coal ash is disproportionately located in low-income communities and communities of color.
Industry’s own data indicate that across the country almost all coal plants are polluting water above federal safe drinking water standards.
Despite regulations established a decade ago, the coal industry has failed to comply with federal safeguards and uses deceptive tactics to avoid cleaning up its coal ash.
Because of industry’s widespread violations of coal ash regulations, in 2023, the EPA ramped up enforcement after designating coal ash a national enforcement priority. The EPA reports that many plants are illegally closing coal ash ponds with toxic ash sitting in groundwater, threatening drinking water and the health of nearby residents.
The longer industry delays, the more toxic waste enters our water, and the more difficult cleanup becomes. But the coal industry is asking Trump’s EPA to let them off the hook.
Action Needed
Federal coal ash protections established in 2015 and 2024 require monitoring, closure, and cleanup of the more than 1,000 coal ash dumps across the country. Cleaning up coal ash now will not only prevent another billion-dollar catastrophic failure, it will preserve drinking water; protect rivers, streams, and lakes; and allow safe redevelopment of power plant sites.
The magnitude of harm from recklessly dumped toxic coal ash requires decisive action from federal and state regulators:
- Power companies must be required to comply with the law and immediately clean up their pollution, including removing any coal ash in contact with groundwater.
- When power companies retire coal plants, they must clean up their toxic mess and leave communities with sites that benefit rather than harm their health, environment, and economy.
- EPA and states must prohibit the use of coal ash as a substitute for clean soil in construction (known as structural fill), especially in residential areas, and ensure cleanup of areas where ash was used as fill.
Click on plant locations on the map to see industry reports
Coal Ash in Illinois
| Baldwin Energy Complex | Luminant | 4 pond(s), and 6 potential ash dump(s) | 6 potential ash dump(s) | 12,986,984 | Boron (x3), Lithium (x3), Molybdenum (x1), Sulfate (x2) | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Coffeen | Luminant | 4 pond(s), 1 landfill(s), and 2 potential ash dump(s) | 2 potential ash dump(s) | 6,451,546 | Arsenic (x3), Boron (x6), Cadmium (x1), Cobalt (x50), Lead (x2), Lithium (x3), Sulfate (x6) | IL-15 (Mary Miller) |
| Crawford | Midwest Generation, LLC | 1 potential legacy pond, ash used as fill | 1 potential legacy pond, ash used as fill | No data yet | Antimony, Boron, Cobalt, Manganese, and Sulfate at unsafe levels. See Ashtracker | IL-04 (Jesus Garcia) |
| Dallman | City Water, Light and Power | 2 pond(s), 1 landfill(s), and 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1 potential ash dump(s) | 2,471,760 | Arsenic (x14), Boron (x10), Sulfate (x1) | IL-13 (Nikki Budzinski) |
| Duck Creek | Luminant | 4 pond(s), 1 landfill(s) | None estimated | 12,613,318 | Arsenic (x2), Cobalt (x6), Lead (x6), Lithium (x2) | IL-17 (Eric Sorensen) |
| E D Edwards | Luminant | 1 pond(s), and 2 potential ash dump(s) | 2 potential ash dump(s) | 4,856,126 | Arsenic (x2), Cobalt (x6), Lead (x2), Lithium (x4) | IL-17 (Eric Sorensen) |
| Fisk Street | Midwest Generation, LLC | 3 potential inactive ponds, Ash used as fill | Ash used as fill | No data yet | No groundwater data reported | IL-04 (Jesus Garcia) |
| Grand Tower | Main Line Generation, LLC | 1 pond(s) | None estimated | 675,000 | Arsenic, Boron, Calcium, Lithium, Molybdenum, and Sulfate at unsafe levels. See 2024 Monitoring Report | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Havana | Luminant | 1 pond(s), and 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1 potential ash dump(s) | 5,845,098 | Cobalt and Lead at unsafe levels. See Ashtracker | IL-15 (Mary Miller) |
| Hennepin | Luminant | 4 pond(s), 1 landfill(s), and 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1,773,598 | Arsenic (x3), Boron (x4), Cobalt (x1), Lithium (x2), Molybdenum (x8), Selenium (x1) | IL-14 (Lauren Underwood) |
| Hutsonville | Ameren Energy Generating Co. | 4 legacy pond(s) | 4 legacy pond(s) | Volume reporting not required | 2007 EPA report found evidence of Manganese, Sulfate, and Total Dissolved Solids contamination | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Joliet 29 | NRG Energy | 3 pond(s), and 4 potential ash dump(s) | 4 potential ash dump(s) | 10,971 | Cobalt (x1) | IL-14 (Lauren Underwood) |
| Joliet 9 | NRG Energy | 1 pond(s) | None estimated | 2,572,178 | Arsenic (x12), Boron (x6), Lithium (x4), Molybdenum (x27), Sulfate (x1) | IL-14 (Lauren Underwood) |
| Joppa Steam | Luminant | 1 pond(s), 1 landfill(s), and 1 likely inactive pond | None estimated | 6,477,524 | Cobalt (x3), Lead (x1) | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Kincaid Generation LLC | Luminant | 1 pond(s), and 2 potential ash dump(s) | 2 potential ash dump(s) | 3,871,994 | Boron (x2) | IL-15 (Mary Miller) |
| Marion | Southern Illinois Power Coop | 9 ponds (but only one acknowledged by the company), and 2 potential ash dump(s) | 2 potential ash dump(s) | No data yet | Arsenic (x5), Boron (x7), Cobalt (x63), Selenium (x2), Sulfate (x2), Thallium (x46) | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Meredosia | Ameren Energy Generating Co. | 3 legacy pond(s) | 3 legacy pond(s) | Volume reporting not required | 2014 EPA report found evidence of Arsenic, Boron, Manganese, Chromium, Sulfate, and Total Dissolved Solids contamination | IL-15 (Mary Miller) |
| Newton | Luminant | 2 pond(s), 1 landfill(s), and 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1 potential ash dump(s) | 23,229,816 | Arsenic (x7), Cobalt (x1) | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Pearl Station | Prairie Power, Inc. | 1 legacy pond(s) | 1 legacy pond(s) | No data yet | 2014 EPA report found evidence of Arsenic, Lead, Boron, Manganese, Chloride, Iron, Manganese, Iron, Sulfate, and Total Dissolved Solids contamination | IL-15 (Mary Miller) |
| Powerton | NRG Energy | 3 pond(s), 1 likely inactive pond, and 4 potential ash dump(s) | 4 potential ash dump(s) | 296,370 | Arsenic (x21), Molybdenum (x2), Sulfate (x1), Thallium (x2) | IL-17 (Eric Sorensen) |
| Prairie State Generating Company, LLC | We Energies | 1 landfill(s) | None estimated | 23,222,366 | Arsenic, Barium, Beryllium, Cadmium, Chromium, Cobalt, Lead, Lithium, Molybdenum, Radium, Thallium, and Total Dissolved Solids at unsafe levels. See Ashtracker | IL-12 (Mike Bost) |
| Venice | Union Electric Co. (MO) | 2 likely inactive pond(s) | None estimated | No data yet | 2014 EPA report found evidence of Arsenic, Cadmium, Iron, Manganese, Boron, and Total Dissolved Solids contamination | IL-13 (Nikki Budzinski) |
| Vermilion | Dynegy Midwest Generation, Inc. | 3 legacy pond(s) | 3 legacy pond(s) | 2,279,640 | 2007 EPA report found evidence of Boron, Iron, Manganese, Chloride Sulfate, and Total Dissolved Solids contamination | IL-02 (Robin Kelly) |
| Waukegan | NRG Energy | 2 pond(s), and 1 likely inactive pond | Ash used as fill | 112,934 | Sulfate (x1) | IL-10 (Brad Schneider) |
| Will County | NRG Energy | 2 pond(s), and 2 likely inactive ponds | Ash used as fill | 42,700 | Arsenic (x2), Molybdenum (x2) | IL-01 (Jonathan Jackson) |
| Wood River | Luminant | 4 pond(s), and 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1 potential ash dump(s) | 1,516,532 | Arsenic (x4), Boron (x33), Molybdenum (x15), Sulfate (x2) | IL-13 (Nikki Budzinski) |
* Total volume of coal ash reported as of 2021 for ponds and landfills regulated under the 2015 Coal Ash Rule, and as of 2024 for legacy ponds at power plants that retired before October 2015. This volume does not include any of the potential ash dumps that will begin reporting in 2026.
** Parentheticals indicate magnitude of exceedance above federal health-based guidelines for drinking water based on industry data and analysis described in the report, Poisonous Coverup. See summaries of EPA reports.
Massive quantities of coal ash are stored at 26 power plant sites in Illinois.
The vast majority of these power plant sites include older coal ash dumps that industry is only beginning to quantify and monitor.
Power plant owners must report on an estimated 43 older coal ash dumps in Illinois for the first time, under the safeguards established by the 2024 Legacy Coal Ash Rule. Those ash dumps are in addition to at least 41 ponds (39 of which have no protective liner to prevent leaks of hazardous chemicals) and seven landfills that were covered by the 2015 rule. These dumps contain more than 109 million cubic yards of coal ash. That’s equivalent to a football field piled more than nine miles high with coal ash.
For all but two of the plants with data available, monitoring reveals groundwater contamination above federal safe drinking water standards. At the two remaining plants, groundwater contains unsafe levels of coal ash pollutants, but the existing monitoring system cannot yet determine the specific source.
Owners of the Crawford, Pearl Station, and Venice power plants failed to report any coal ash ponds, in potential violation of the federal coal ash regulations. Earthjustice estimates that these companies may have operated at least four coal ash ponds, many of which may be unlined ponds that pose a threat to groundwater.
For More Information
Christine Santillana, Senior Legislative Counsel, Earthjustice, csantillana@earthjustice.org
Lisa Evans, Senior Counsel, Earthjustice, levans@earthjustice.org.
About the Map
- EPA’s first coal ash regulations, issued in 2015, covered only some coal ash dumps, exempting older ponds and landfills at current and former coal plant sites.
- In 2024, EPA extended federal monitoring and cleanup requirements to hundreds of previously excluded older coal ash landfills and ponds leaking toxic pollution into groundwater and surface water. Industry is now required to monitor those older dump sites, filing initial reports on so-called ‘legacy’ ponds at former coal plants in 2024.
- In 2026, industry will be required to report on additional dump sites at operating power plants that did not receive ash after Oct. 19, 2015. Groundwater monitoring requirements are not yet in effect for these newly regulated dumps, so the table below may lack specific information about the number of units and the extent of contamination at a particular site.
More on Coal Ash in Illinois
- Poisonous Coverup: The Widespread Failure of the Power Industry to Clean Up Coal Ash Dumps (November 3, 2022)
- Court Victories Signal Hope for Communities Threatened by Coal Ash (August 10, 2021)
- Illinois Coal Ash Rule Will Clean Up Coal’s Dirty Legacy (April 16, 2021)
- What Schoolhouse Rock Didn’t Tell You About Lawmaking (April 16, 2021)
- Milestone Bill to Clean Up Coal Ash Pollution in Illinois Becomes Law (July 30, 2019)
- Cap and Run: Toxic Coal Ash Left Behind by Big Polluters Threatens Illinois Water (November 27, 2018)
- Federal Lawsuit Filed to Force Dynegy to Clean Up Toxic Pollution of Vermilion River (May 30, 2018)
- Tr-Ash Talk: Rebellion Against Coal Ash in Illinois (August 31, 2011)
Coal Ash in States, Territories, Regions
Puerto Rico (En Español)
Earthjustice fights in the courts for a long-term solution to the toxic menace of coal ash. And we act on behalf of dozens of clients and over 100 coalition partners to defeat legislative attempts to subvert federally enforceable safeguards of coal ash.
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