Toxic releases by Illinois industries higher in 2010

Illinois industries generated 10 million more pounds of toxic pollution in 2010 than they did in 2009.

That’s according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s latest Toxics Release Inventory, released on Thursday.

Pollution was disposed of in landfills and injection wells, released to waterways and emitted into the air.

TRI data show 101.8 million pounds of toxins released or disposed of in Illinois in 2010. In 2009, that number was 91.8 million. But the 2010 total still is lower than 2008.

The inventory also indicates more than 102.6 million pounds of waste was sent to recycling facilities, about 15 million pounds more than in 2009.

The inventory allows the public to know what toxic chemicals are released into their communities. Information is released two years in arrears.