Illinois legislation that would have prevented the premature closure of two nuclear plants has been killed by environmental groups and an alliance of fossil fuel companies.

Reports Tom Kacich at the Illinois newspaper the News-Gazette:

“Time has run out," said [Senator Donnie] Trotter. "I'm disappointed because I saw and heard, by sitting in those meetings, that there was some movement. It was just one or two entities — and I'm not going to name them — who I think were intentionally slowing the process down.”

The most important of those entities is ELPC, the Environmental Law and Policy Center — a non-profit organization that represents itself as representing the public and environmental interest. ELPC created a “clean jobs coalition” whose allies include Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Environment Illinois, Illinois Environment Council and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).