ROD R. BLAGOJEVICH

GOVERNOR

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60601

February 2, 2006

RECEIVED

CLERK'S OFFICE

FEB 0 2 2006

STATE OF ILLINOIS

Pollution Control Board

Dear Members of the Illinois Pollution Control Board and the Joint Committee on Administrative

Rules :

I am writing you to ask for your support of my plan to reduce mercury emissions from

coal-fired power plants in Illinois - the largest single source of mercury contamination. Just this

morning, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) issued yet another advisory warning

about potentially dangerous mercury contamination in fish found in many Illinois waterways

.

The need for aggressive action to reduce mercury emissions grows more urgent every time our

waterways are tested for contamination

.

Today, IDPH issued its 2006 sports fish consumption advisories to warn Illinoisans not to

eat too much fish caught in certain waterways in Illinois . Expanded testing of Illinois' lakes and

streams led IDPH to add eleven more lakes streams to an already long list of Illinois waterways

where pollution - including toxic mercury pollution - makes the fish unsafe to eat .

Exposure to unsafe levels of toxic mercury can cause well-known and potentially serious

health problems, especially for pregnant women, women of childbearing age and children

younger than 15 years. Developing fetuses can be exposed to mercury when a mother eats

tainted fish and can suffer mental retardation, cerebral palsy, lower IQs, slow motor functions,

deafness, blindness and other health problems . Recent studies indicate that as many as 10

percent of babies born each year in the United States are exposed to excessive mercury levels

in the womb .

Since eating fish from contaminated waterways is the main source of mercury exposure,

reducing mercury levels in our lakes, rivers and streams is the most prudent way to protect the

public from this dangerous toxin . And because an estimated 43 percent of mercury emissions

come from power plants - the largest man-made source - I announced last month a proposal to

cut mercury emissions from power plants by 90 percent by June 30, 2009 . If adopted, our new

standard will reduce toxic mercury emissions faster and more thoroughly than the federal

restrictions adopted last spring, and will achieve the largest overall amount of mercury reduction

of any state in the country

.

I am confident that currently available technology can affordably achieve these

reductions without jeopardizing the availability of affordable and reliable electricity. The Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) is now engaged in a participatory process of soliciting

comments from power producers, organized labor, and other interested parties . I believe that

---

the

rules

IEPA will soon submit for your consideration strike the right balance between

protecting public health and the environment without burdening ratepayers, power producers or

Illinois' economy. I hope that you will agree with me that IEPA's thoughtfully drafted rules meet

your expectations of a fair and balanced approach . Ultimately, we should all be able to agree

that both the public and the sporting community should be able to consume the Illinois fish they

catch without fearing serious risk to their health

.

Sincerely,

Rod R. Blagojevich

Governor