Chicago Invests in Climate Action

LWV Chicago's Environmental Action Committee joins the Illinois Environmental Council in congratulating Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the City Council in its investment in infrastructure that will target climate change.

The 2022 budget for the city of Chicago includes:

• $77.8 million in “environmental justice initiatives,” including $46 million to expand the city’s tree canopy by 15,000 annually for five years.

• $101.3 million toward “climate investments.”

• $136 million to community development, including $82 million to “reactivate vacant city-owned land.”

• $50.6 million toward infrastructure and parks.

“This historic investment in climate-related infrastructure comes at a critical moment, one that demands increased resource allocation for public health and environmental protection as Chicagoans, predominantly Black and Brown communities, are bracing from the impacts of climate change and disinvestment,” said IEC. See the statement.