Petcoke alert: Hackers and activists team up on Chicago environmental issue

Midwest Energy News: Whenever the wind blows stronger than 15 miles per hour on Chicago’s Southeast Side, more than 400 residents who are signed up for a text messaging alert system get a notification saying: “Wind Alert! Avoid petcoke exposure by limiting outdoor activity,” and a link to learn more.

The alerts are the result of a collaboration between activists on Chicago’s Southeast Side who for several years have been fighting the storage of petroleum coke, or petcoke, in their neighborhood, and Chi Hack Night, a volunteer grassroots program that engages citizens, programmers and government agencies in helping people use public data and open source software around certain policies or issues.

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