Illinois Leading The Charge For Renewable Energy

Illinois is among the top states in the nation when it comes to renewable energy. Kevin Borgia, with the Illinois Wind Energy Coalition, says recent growth will have a strong impact in Southern Illinois. "The primary beneficiaries are going to be rural communities that are going to get new jobs, new economic development, new payments to new farmland and land owners, and new property-tax revenue. That's going to be a huge infusion for those communities", said Borgia. Borgia says increased renewable energy could also translate to stable energy costs for homeowners and businesses. That means it could ward off more potential rate hikes. Illinois added more turbines than any other state last year and ranks fourth in the nation when it comes to overall wind energy.  full story

Chicago O'Hare International Airport Still 2nd Busiest U.S. Airport

CHICAGO (AP) - New figures from the Federal Aviation Administration show Chicago's O'Hare International Airport remains the second busiest in the nation. Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson is the busiest by number of arrivals and departures, despite a decline of 2.7-percent in 2011 from the previous year. Traffic was also down at O'Hare, dipping 0.4-percent to nearly 879,000 takeoffs and landings. The figures were released Thursday by the Federal Aviation Administration. Worldwide, O'Hare ranks third busiest by passenger numbers behind Atlanta and Beijing. O'Hare is undergoing a $15 billion expansion. The city reached a deal in March with United and American Airlines on funding for a second phase of expansion involving construction of a new runway and other upgrades. Under the deal, Chicago issued $1-billion in bonds to pay for the work. - http://goo.gl/xEqtC