Once and future coal mine: Illinois’ largest state park

Chicagoist reports Pyramid State Park probably isn’t on your radar, but at nearly 20,000 acres it’s the Land of Lincoln’s largest. Despite being surrounded by flat land, the Perry County park has a uniquely hilly character because much of it was once strip-mined and used for coal waste dumping. And if the Illinois General Assembly gets its way, it will be again.

Chicagoist reports:

The Legislature has sent a bill to Governor Quinn’s desk that would lease a chunk of the park as a staging and dumping ground for a new coal strip mine just over Pyramid’s border. The mine would also dig underneath the park itself. Once the mine is exhausted, the mining company will “restore” and donate the adjacent land to the park. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has taken a neutral stance on the bill, but many worry it sets us down a slippery slope.