Crime & Law
Trump Tower To Pay $4.8M for Environmental Violations, Funds Will Help Restore Chicago River Habitat
Trump International Tower and Hotel on the Chicago River. (Alexandre Fagundes / iStock)
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has announced a $4.8 million settlement with Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago, resolving environmental violations related to the building’s cooling system, which uses water drawn from the Chicago River.
The building — located at 401 N. Wabash Ave. on the Chicago River — is capable of pulling more than 20 million gallons of water from the river daily.
In September 2024, a judge found Trump Tower in violation of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. The building had not obtained proper permits to pull in water or to discharge it, nor were the required studies conducted to minimize the impact on aquatic wildlife.
In his ruling, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thaddeus Wilson also faulted Trump Tower for committing a continuing “public nuisance” by failing to comply with state and federal law dating back to 2008, including underreporting its discharges for more than a decade.
Raoul had filed suit against the building in 2018 and was joined by Friends of the Chicago River and the Illinois chapter of the Sierra Club as plaintiff-intervenors.
“The Chicago River is one of our city’s most treasured natural resources, and future generations should benefit from the opportunities for recreation and commerce it provides,” Raoul said in a statement announcing the settlement. “I am pleased to have reached this agreement, which will protect the Chicago River and the important habitat that it provides to local wildlife.”
The Clean Water Act regulates cooling systems like the one at Trump Tower because the intake structures have the capacity to pull in fish and other aquatic life, or to trap them against intake screens. The system’s discharge can dump heated water back into the river, which is also harmful to wildlife.
“Trump Tower showed a disregard for the environment through its daily discharge operations, which violated the Illinois Environmental Protection Act and Illinois Pollution Control Regulations,” Illinois EPA Acting Director James Jennings said in a statement.
In addition to the $4.8 million — the majority of which will fund habitat restoration on the Chicago River — the settlement also requires Trump Tower to:
— install flow meters to monitor the volume of heated water discharged into the river. A third party will audit the accuracy of the meters and share data monthly.
— make changes to its cooling system to prevent aquatic life from becoming trapped.
According to Raoul’s office, the agreement is subject to a 30-day public comment period, at which point it will be submitted to a judge for approval.
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
