Where Trump, Clinton stand on the environment
Despite headlines about lead in Michigan drinking water, the environment hasn't made much noise in the presidential race between Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump and that's unfortunate, local experts think.
Chicago and the suburbs need a president who will reduce air pollution, said Howard Learner, executive director of the Environmental Law and Policy Center.
"Air quality is getting better but we have a way to go because pollution doesn't just stay within municipal boundaries," he said.
Collins, an environmental attorney from Naperville, said aging pipes are a source of water pollution in the region.
"A recent study found that 170 public water systems in Illinois have exceeded EPA lead level standards in drinking water at least twice since 2004, including those in Berwyn and Forest View, York Township, Barrington and Volo," he said.
Clinton pledges to install 500 million solar panels by the end of her first term, remove obstacles to wind-power installations and continue tax incentives for clean energy.
"We can have enough clean energy to power every home; we can build a new modern electric grid. That's a lot of jobs," she said in the Sept. 26 presidential debate.
Trump has promised clean air and clean water but not provided many specifics. He has criticized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for "totalitarian" tactics and promises to remove regulations on energy production like fracking.
"We will get the bureaucracy out of the way of innovation, so we can pursue all forms of energy. (This) includes nuclear, wind and solar energy - but not to the exclusion of other energy," Trump said May 26 in North Dakota.
Trump has been skeptical of climate change and promises to stop funding U.N. global warming programs. He also intends to "cancel" the Paris Climate Agreement among 55 nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Clinton supports the Paris Climate Agreement. "I think it's important we grip this, and deal with it both at home and abroad," she said.