Illinois Attorney General and City Sue South Side Vegetable Oil Plant Over Pollution and Odors
The Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and city officials have filed a lawsuit against Pullman Innovations, a vegetable oil plant located in South Deering, Chicago. The lawsuit accuses the company of causing excessive odors and illegal air pollution, constructing an unpermitted natural gas boiler, and violating its operating permit conditions. Residents have long complained about the noxious odors emanating from the facility, likening them to corpses, dead fish, and other unpleasant smells. The lawsuit follows a class-action suit filed by resident Oscar Ortega in 2023, which was approved to represent over 2,400 households. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency had previously referred the case after inspectors experienced difficulty breathing due to the odors during a 2025 inspection.