{"id":24938,"date":"2026-05-28T12:38:34","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T16:38:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=24938"},"modified":"2026-05-28T12:38:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T16:38:35","slug":"new-edf-report-nearly-4-million-illinois-residents-live-within-half-a-mile-of-a-warehouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2026\/05\/28\/new-edf-report-nearly-4-million-illinois-residents-live-within-half-a-mile-of-a-warehouse\/","title":{"rendered":"New EDF report:\u00a0Nearly 4\u00a0million Illinois residents live within half\u00a0a\u00a0mile of a warehouse\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Over the last decade, the number of warehouses across the nation has exploded. In Illinois alone, there are almost 7,000 warehouses larger than 30,000 square feet with a combined area of more than 1 billion square feet. More than one in four people in Illinois now live within half a mile of a warehouse.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new Illinois Warehouse Boom<\/a> report examines the impact these truck-attracting warehouses have on communities across the state. The report includes information on the demographics of the communities near these warehouses, while estimating the negative health impacts of living in close proximity to these facilities.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Warehouses tend to be disproportionately located in communities of color, bringing vehicle traffic, mainly made up of polluting diesel trucks. These state-defined environmental justice communities cover 1.3% of the state but contain 41% of warehouses.  Our report finds that the mega-warehouses (100,000 square feet or larger), prevalent in these communities, generate an estimated 683,000 truck trips a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles are disproportionate polluters:\u00a0Despite only being 7% of on-road vehicles\u00a0they\u00a0emit 67% of the transportation sector\u2019s\u00a0nitrogen oxide\u00a0emissions\u00a0and 59% of\u00a0particulate matter\u00a0\u2014\u00a0these\u00a0pollutants\u00a0increase instances of asthma,\u00a0and\u00a0PM 2.5 alone\u00a0will result\u00a0in\u00a0an\u00a0estimated\u00a0$4.8 billion<\/a>\u00a0in public health costs in 2026.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Despite the harm warehouses cause to the communities they are sited in, there is currently no method or database to track warehouses. While the U.S. Energy Information Agency contains information on polluting facilities such as oil refineries or power plants; there is no federal or state data base for facilities that attract pollution instead of producing it directly. Due to the lack of regulation, it is extremely difficult to learn the location of warehouses or who operates them. EDF used a private database in the analysis, but private databases tend to be expensive, limited in scope and have burdensome terms of service for sharing data. Therefore, as things currently stand, communities lack the means to monitor the facilities in their own backyard.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To address the pollution and lack of transparency from warehouses, the Clear the Air Coalition<\/a>, which EDF is part of, is supporting the Warehouse Pollution Reduction Act<\/a>.  The act would address the impacts of warehouses by establishing an Indirect Source Rule \u2014 a measure that seeks to regulate facilities indirectly responsible for pollution.  In addition to Illinois, other states such as New York, New Jersey and Colorado are considering their own ISR rules.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

California has already implemented the policy in the South Coast Air Quality Management District.<\/a> According to South Coast\u2019s most recent analysis<\/a>, its ISR program resulted in reductions of 1.5 tons of NOx pollution and 0.33 tons of particulate matter. The program is on track to result in 300 fewer deaths, 5,800 fewer asthma attacks and $2.7 billion in reduced health costs by 2031. The success of California\u2019s program makes a strong case for Illinois to adopt their own ISR.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key provisions of the Warehouse Pollution Reduction Act are: <\/p>\n\n\n\n