CLR1<’
pjj
Dear
Illinois Pollution
Control
Board,
A
couple of weeks ago
my class
and
I went down
to
take
some tests on
take
some tests on it and
I have
to say
the results were
the same as the
last time ewEnt
there...not
very pretty. We
are all very
worried
about
the future of the Chicago
River
and
how
it
will
affect our future.
So
I have
come
up with
some
Ideas on how
to
help
the river with its
“problem”
1.
People really
need to enforce the no
littering
law:
If you go to a park these
days there
are
trash
cans all over,
but there
is also garbage all over
the place. We need people
in the
park monitoring these
people who
do this so that when
they
just
through
their trash
on the ground,
there will
be
people there to confront
them
and
tell what
would be the right
thing to do next
time
and they
would also be the
clean
up
people
for
that
park.
2.
We could
have
a group
to clean
up
around
the city:
Once
a month the city
could have a
group of
50
or 60 people to go around
the city
to
different
parks and clean
up all of the
pollution around
there so that
none of that runs
into
the sewers and ends
up in the
river.
3. Take action:
Take responsibility
into
your
own hands
to
help
keep this earth
green. Recycle. Reuse.
And
Rethink what
you are
doing with your
trash before
you through
it
out.
Can it be
recycled
or reused
for anything
else?
That’s
your call.
Those
are just some thoughts,
but with
a little effort it
can
and
will make
all the
difference.
Sincerely,
Allison
Thoms
ECVE
CLFRK’8
OFF!CE
u
l
?009
STATE
OF ILLINOIS
FoNution
Control
Board
Dear:
Illinois
Pollution
Control
Board.
Hi
my
name
is
Au
Hodzic
and
I
go
to
Thomas
J.
waters
elementary
school.
I will
tell
you
about
the
river.
The
first
time
we
tested
the
river
and
it
was
in
winter.
The
results
were
horrible.
I
remember
the
last
time
my
class
and
I went
to
test
to
out
again
to
see
how
the
river
is
doing.
When
we
took
the
tests
again
it was
worse
because
so
many
things
went
in
the
river
that
killed
fishes.
I
think
how
we
can
fix
it
is
people
should
recycle
and
not
throw
paper
and
food
in
the
river.
I think
we
should
test
some
of
the
stuff
to
see
what
should
be
in
the
river
and
what
should
not.
After
the
river
is
better,
we
could
swim
in
it.
Sincerely,
Ali
Hodzic
Dear
Illinois
Pollution
Control
Board
CLERK’S
OFFICE
JUL
022009
STATE
OF
ILLINOiS
Pollution
Control
Board
U
am a
student
at Thomas
J.
Waters
elementary
school.
My
name
is
Austin
Bunge
and
U
have
some
very
bad
news.
My
class
was
testing
the
Chicago
River’s
water
and
we got
horrible
results.
The
Chicago
River
is much
polluted
from
all
of the
sewage
and
trash
just
dumped
into
the
river.
When
the
sewage
gets
into
the
river
there
is
a low
oxygen
level
and
it
kills
all
of
the
fish.
It
is
very
sad
that
the
fish
have
to
die
from
our
pollution.
Thank
you
for making
the
Water
Treatment
Plant,
it helped
out
a
lot.
Sadly,
we still
need
a lot
more
help
to
clean
it
up.
We all
need
your
help
to
clean
up
the
Chicago
River.
Please
help
clean
the
Chicago
River
for
the
kids
at
Thomas
J. Waters
elementary
school!
Sincerely,
Austin
Bunge
CLERK’S
OFF1CE
q-.
j(j
Dear Illinois
State
Pollution
Control
Board,
STATE
OF
Pollution
Control
Board
Hi,
my name
is
Tank
Hodzic
and
I
go
to
Thomas
J
Waters
Elementary
School.
I
am
writing
this
letter
to
inform
you
about
the
pollution
that
is
going
on
in
the
depths
of
the
Chicago
River.
I would
advise
you
to
prevent
this
problem
from
going
any
further
because
it
is
not
only
dangerous
for
us
but
the
creatures
in
the river
are
also
in
jeopardy.
Thankfully,
just
like
every
problem
there
is
a
solution.
All
it
takes
is
help
from
the
people.
I
got
a
chance
to
visit
the
Chicago
River
and
to
tell
you
the truth
it
was
DISGUSTING.
There
was
soap
in
the
river,
sewage
from
your toilets,
and
dead fish.
This
is
happening
because
the
people
do
not
care
much
about
the
environment
as
much
as
they
should.
To
sum
it
all
up, in
my
opinion
the
river
was
atrocious.
I
also
got
a
chance
to
visit
the
Wilmette
locks
near
Evanston.
It
was
an
amazing
experience
to
get
a
chance
to
really
look
at
how
our
water
really
works.
The
only
problem
was
that
the
river
was
frozen
so
I
could
not
really
see
how
clear
the
water
is.
The
river
is
supposed
to
be
a
place
where
you can
relax
and
watch
the
flow of
the water.
Unfortunately,
thanks
to the pollution
in
the
water
the
river
is not
a
place
to relax
but a
place
to figure
out ways
to fix
this
problem.
I am
hoping
that you
have
a
solution
to this
problem.
Thank
you
for your
time
and I
hope
that
the
river
becomes
a better
place.
Sincerely,
Tank
Hodzic.
N;
t
1
L
‘l
Dear
Illinois
State
Pollution
Control
Board,
rc:,I
I
am
sad
to
say
that
the
results
of
the
tests
in
which
we
took
of
the
water
in the
Chicago
River
as
a
field
trip
for
our
school
came
back with
poor
results. Here
are
the
results
that
came
back:
Dissolved
Oxygen:
Four
parts
per
million=39%=D
Biochemical
Oxygen
Demand:
One
to
two
parts
per
million=B
Coliform
Bacteria:
Positive=1=D
Acidity
Alkalinity:
8PH=3=14
Degrees
Celsius=A
Nitrates:
OPPM=2=C
Phosphates:
Two
parts
per
million=3=B
Turbidity:
Forty
JTUs=3=B
By
our
ranking
system,
the
final
grade
for
the
cleanliness
of
the
Chicago
River
is
a C.
As
you
see,
this
is
not
a
good
grade
for
our
community.
What
do
you
suppose
the
community
could
do
to prevent
this?
If
you
don’t
have
any
suggestions,
you’re
in
luck.
Why?
Because
I
have
created
a
solutions of
my
own.
The
solution
in
which
I speak
of is
both
simple
and
effective:
First,
put
up
a
sign
in
which
states
do
not pollute
in
river.
Second,
set
up
a
video
surveillance
camera
to
monitor
the
perimeter.
Third,
if someone
disobeys
the
rule,
they
will
be
caught
on
the
camera.
Then,
because
you
have
proof
of
the
crime,
you
sentence
them
to
community
service
for
their
wrong
doing.
Now
all the
polluters
of
the
Chicago
River
will
pay!
So
what
do
you
think?
Awesome,
right?
That’s
my
idea.
If
you
have
any
ideas
for me,
write
me
back.
Sincerely,
Jordan
Rivera
C
2
2qQ
Dear
Illinois
Pollution
Control
Board,PoIi
J111S
We
need
to
improve
the
water
quality
because
our water
source
is
dirty.
How
do
we
know?
On
our
first
fieldtrip
to
the
Chicago
lake,
we
studied
how
polluted
the
water
was.
According
to
our
study,
the
grade
was
c-,
and
that’s
not
good
news.
The
study
showed
that
there
wasn’t
much
dissolved oxygen
and
that’s
why
c
is
not
good.
In
this
situation
what
happens
is
that
a lot
of
our
sewage
gets
inside
of
our
lake,
and
this
would
cause
a lot
of
people
to
get
sick
or even
die.
This
is
especially
harmful
for
babies,
young
children
and
anyone
who
drinks
2 percent
milk,
because
the
milk
is
mixed
with
water.
The
first
problem
we
have
to
take
care
of is
littering,
people
keep
on
discarding
their
garbage
everywhere
instead
of
the
appropriate
places.
The
city
should
put
a sign
on
every
street
corner
of
every
block,
stating
that
“Any
discarding
garbage
not
put
in garbage
cans
will
be
fined
one
hundred
and
ten
dollars.”
I think
more
civilians
would
listen
if
they
put
up
a
sign
with
that
warning.
Then
if
a
person
gets
caught
they
will
pay
the price.
This
will
probably
keep
people
from
make
this
mistake
again.
The
city
would
make
more
money
and
keep
our
environment
cleaner
at
the
same
time.
Sincerely
Max
Garcia
VE
/1
CLERKS
OFFICE
-
JUL
iJ22
Dear
Illinois
Pollution
Control
Board,
STATE
OF
ILLINOIS
Pollution
Control
Board
Only
you
can
save
Illinois! Hello.
I
am
a
concerned
student
at
Thomas
J.
Waters
Elementary
School.
I
and
several
other
students
have
recently been
to
the
Chicago
River and
took
several
tests
of
Chicago’s
water
supply.
To
the
student’s
dismay,
the
water
showed
very
poor
tests. Some
of
the
scores
were
a
one
(four
ppm)
in
the
Dissolved
Oxygen
test,
a
three
(one
or two
ppm)
in
BOD,
and
a
positive
in
the
Coliform
Bacteria
test!
After
seeing
these
tests
many
students
were
shocked!
We
were
also
very
worried
because
there
were
bacteria
in our
water
supply!
Just
the
day
before
the
class
saw
a
video
about
the
Chicago
River
and
how
nice
it
used
to be
in
the
1980’s. The
water
was
so
clean
and
test
results
had
great
grades.
Now
when
we
look
at
the
current
river
tests,
they
are
failing
miserably.
This
is
not
healthy
for
the
citizens
of Illinois
because
there
were
proven
to
be
bacteria in
the
waters.
Bacteria
that
are
in
the
water that
we
drink
get
into
our
systems
which
can
cause
all
sorts
of
problems
and
diseases.
For
example,
in
the
earlier
years,
people
dumped
all
of
their
sewage
into
the
waters
and
it intoxicated
it.
So
after
that
the
river
got
bacteria
and
the
citizens
drank
it.
Thus
the
bacteria
caused
diseases
that
killed
thousands
of Chicagoans
back
then.
One
of
the
deadly
diseases
that
the
people
died
from
was
none
other
than
the
disease
called
cholera!
So
Please,
can
you
enhance
the
water
levels
and
tests
to make
the
Chicago
River
cleaner?
That
way
the
chances
of people
getting
sick
are
lessened.
You
wouldn’t
want
what
happened
many
years
ago
to
occur
again,
now
would
you?
Not
to
mention
that
citizens
would
be
very
pleased
by
your
actions.
It is
a
win-
win
situation.
You
are
keeping
the
river,
our
water
supply,
clean,
saving
countless
lives,
getting
more
drinkable
water,
saving
the
environment,
getting
all
of
the
credits!
So
while
we
still
can,
save
the
future
of
Illinois.
If we
don’t
act
fast
then
soon
the
waters
will
be
much
too
infected
and
it will
be
too
late
to
save
it!
Please
help
the
Illinois’
water
supply
because
that
is
your
duty
as
an
American
citizen!
Sincerely,
Ariel
Jordan
S
OFFICE
Dear
Illinois
Pollution
Control
Boardr
Pollut
STATE
OF
Control
ILLJNo,
Boad
I’m
a
student
at
Thomas
J.
Waters.
Elementary
School.
My
class
and
I had
gone
to
the
Chicago
River
and
took
some
tests
to
determine
how
filthy
it
was
and
the
results
that
we
got
weren’t
that
great.
Many
of
the
answers
were
very
low
and
it had
clearly
stated
that
in
the
river
there
was
sewage.
To
me
it was
clearly
telling
us
that
it
wanted
us to
clean
it
out.
It
needed
immediate
treatment.
But
we
don’t
have
the
appropriate
equipment
to
do
it.
If
we
could
please
get
your
help
we
wouldn’t
have
to
watch
the
filthiness
and
actually
be
able
to
clearly
see
the
joyful
fishes
swim
around.
So
if
you
could
please
help
us it
would
be
an
honor!!!!
That
way
we
would
have
a
cleaner
river
which
equals
a
cleaner
life.
Depending
on
what
you
do
people
follow,
so
if
you
help
us
clean
out
the
river
the
people will
get
motivated
to keep
on
helping
our
environment.
This
will
prevent
anymore
pollution
and
a healthier
river.
My
class
and
I have
gone
to
the
river
twice
and
took
water
test
twice
because
when
we
tested
the
river
for
the
bacteria
the
test
had
given
us
a result
of
yellow
water
which
was
supposed
to
be
a
bluish
color.
The
result
is
a
mystery
because
we
don’t
know
why
it
came
out
like
that.
But
you
can
help
us
find
out!
Sincerely,
Jacqueline
Cambron
ill
;:-i
Dear
Illinois
State
Pollution
Control
Board,
STATE
o
OllUtIOfl
Control
8
orri
My
name
is
Kimberly
Cortes; I
am
a
student
at
Thomas
J.
Waters
School
in
sixth
grade.
My
class
has
been
studying
the
river,
and
has
been
testing
it.
We
go every
month
and
see
if
there
is
any
sewage
that
comes
from
homes.
Every
time
we
go
there
it’s
the
same
result
there
is sewage
and
ducks have
to
swim
in
there.
We
give
the
river
a
grade
based
on
temperature,
oxygen,
bacteria,
and
sewage.
Last
time
we
went
to
the
river
it
got
a C+
and
that
is
not
good
a
matter
a
fact
it’s
horrible.
We
know
we
did
not
make
a
mistake
because
we
double
check
4
times.
So
we
need
to
make
the
river
cleaner.
So
I suggest
you
should
upgrade
the
cleaning
on
the
water.
We
can
do
this
by
using
the
same
levels
of quality
that
our
neighbor
Indiana
uses.
They
have
three
levels
that
make
the
water
clear
and
blue.
Imagine
we
could
have
a clean
lake
full
of
life,
we
could
also
use
a
ultra
violet
light
that
makes
it clean.
With
this
we could
bring
more
tourists
and
even
help
us
with
the
2016
Olympics.
So
please
help
and
upgrade
so
we
could
have
a clean
and
clear
river
full
of
life.
Sincerely,
Kimberly
Cortes