US state sues Trump Tower over alleged water pollution

The US state of Illinois has filed a lawsuit against the Trump Tower in Chicago, alleging that it was releasing millions of gallons of water into the Chicago River without assessing its impact on pollution.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan said she filed the lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court on Tuesday, reports NBC News.

She said that the building takes in almost 20 million gallons of water per day from the river to cool the property's heating and ventilation systems, and that heated water is later discarded into the river.

Madigan's office also said that federal law requires "extensive studies of Chicago River fish populations and the impact of the building's water intake system" and that the property failed to submit study results to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in 2013.

It also says that Trump Tower's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit expired on Aug. 31, 2017.

"Trump Tower continues to take millions of gallons of water from the Chicago River every day without a permit and without any regard to how it may be impacting the river's ecosystem," Madigan said in a statement.

"I filed my lawsuit to make sure Trump Tower cannot continue violating the law."

A spokesperson for the Trump Organisation said the issue could have been handled in other ways instead of a lawsuit, NBC News reported.

"We are disappointed that the Illinois Attorney General would choose to file this suit... One can only conclude that this decision was motivated by politics."

--IANS

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