What’s new: EDF released a report this week, Illinois Warehouse Boom, which examines the growth of mega-warehouses and their health impacts in communities across Illinois, building on its recent research in New York. The launch event featured a report overview by EDF authors, personal accounts from community advocates and remarks from three state legislators (see full recording above). The report finds that at least one in six Illinois residents now lives within half a mile of a large warehouse of at least 100,000 square feet. Other key findings include:

• More than 2 million Illinois residents – at least one in six – live within half a mile of a leased warehouse of at least 100,000 square feet.
• Of those, 127,000 are under age five and 251,100 are over age 64.
• At least 525,000 freight truck trips per day service a total of 2,401 leased mega-warehouses across the state.
• Hispanic/Latino populations are 195% more likely to live within half a mile of a warehouse than would be expected, based on statewide statistics.
• Black populations are 137% more likely to live within half a mile of a warehouse than would be expected, based on statewide statistics.
• Low-income populations are 125% more likely to live within half a mile of a warehouse than would be expected, based on statewide statistics. This population composes 12.2% of the total population but makes up 15% of warehouse neighbors.

Why it matters: Diesel trucks emit significant pollution around warehouses while idling and while traveling at low speeds, and regulations to protect health haven’t kept up. A growing body of peer-reviewed research shows that exposure to traffic-related air pollution increases the risk of childhood asthma. Asthma is a leading cause of missed school days and has been linked to diminished school performance. Black children are nearly nine times more likely to be hospitalized for asthma and five times more likely to die from asthma, compared to non-Hispanic white children. Air pollution from diesel trucks is also associated with increased health risks at other stages of life. It raises the risk of preterm birth, low birth weight, dementia, heart disease and stroke. 

What’s next: policy solutions

The report arrives as Illinois state legislators consider the Warehouse Pollution Insights Act, a bill that would bring greater transparency around mega-warehouses by requiring truck-attracting facilities to report information on warehouse ownership, truck trips and associated emissions to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA). The bill would also expand IEPA’s truck and air quality monitoring capacity with a focus on high-impact communities, and require new facilities to include charging infrastructure to support electric freight vehicles.

Other policy responses have also been proposed, such as the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) rule, which would require truck manufacturers to sell an increasing percentage of zero-emission trucks and school buses. If implemented by 2027, the ACT rule could see approximately half of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles becoming zero-emission vehicles by 2050, according to a Northwestern University analysis supported by EDF.

Go deeper: Download the full report.