FREP programs are free, open to the public

Reservations are not required, unless so stated

Wednesday, February 8, 2023  Noon - 1:30 PM

FREP Noon Network

Location:  Prairieview Education Center, at Silver Creek Conservation Area,

Crystal Lake, McHenry County Conservation Dist.  2112 Behan Rd., Crystal Lake, IL

Program:   BiState Mussel Study



Presenter: Alison Stodola, Aquatic Biologist, Curator of Malacology,

           Illinois Natural History Survey Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois

Photo from Mussel Monitoring Program's

 Jan 2022 publication The Clam Chronicle

Researchers with the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) are investigating populations of freshwater mussels in the Fox River watershed. Mussel populations have been studied in several large-scale projects in the past, but the most recent sampling efforts for the entire watershed were completed over 20 years ago.

The objective of the project is to compile species richness data, identify areas with unique mussel assemblages, and locate rare, endangered species. One such species is Rainbow (Cambarunio iris), also called Rainbow shell or Rainbow Mussel, which are small, colorful, striped mussels that use Smallmouth Bass and darter species as fish hosts. Historical records suggest that Rainbow were abundant prior to the industrial revolution, but they are now endangered in both Illinois and Wisconsin. Rainbow are believed to be extirpated in the Fox River watershed in Illinois and are found in only a few locations in Wisconsin.

Researchers from INHS and WDNR have sampled nearly 100 sites since 2020, and over 20 live species have been confirmed alive in the watershed. These data will be used to determine healthy sites for reintroduction and/or augmentation of populations of Rainbow or other vulnerable freshwater mussel species. Long-term research projects that investigate comprehensive changes in mussel communities are invaluable for understanding species shifts and adaptations in a changing environment. 

For our 7th year FREP is co-sponsoring a screening for the

One Earth Film Festival

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Waubonsee Community College,

Aurora Downtown Campus

18 S. River St., Aurora

5:45 PM Doors open for Resource Fair by the screening co-sponsors

6:30 PM Film, followed by discussion.

Tickets are now available online

The screening is FREE, with a suggested $8 donation per ticket going to One Earth Film Festival

Film info page with ticket order link

Our film webpage with co-sponsor information and links

Going Circular is a full-length documentary. From the globe-spanning patterns of ocean currents to the microscopic cycles of a living cell, our planet sustains balance through circularity. Scientists, inventors, economists, and designers are increasingly finding that nature’s most fundamental rules of the biosphere may just be the solution to humanity’s collision course with the technosphere.

The 11th Annual Fox River Summit

Thursday, March 16, 2023  

Veterans Terrace at Echo Park

Burlington, Wisconsin

7:30 - 4:30 PM

Link to info & registration -- Registration Now Open

$45 for the day, including breakfast, lunch & refreshments

Link to Program Listing of Speakers

Think globally, act locally is a common, long-used phrase in the environmental movement. With so much political opposition to countering climate change these days, acting locally is sometimes the only way we can maintain our sanity.

It's not always an easy task. I get lazy and drive my car when I could walk or take my bike. I recycle, but I could make a better effort to buy products that come in refillable bottles, or in glass containers instead of single-use plastic. I see an interesting webinar or podcast, but I decide to watch Netflix or sports instead. Why do I only remember my reusable cloth bags at the grocery store, and never at the hardware or pet store?

There are so many little things I could be doing better for the environment but I don't. We need to remind ourselves that none of us is a perfect environmentalist. We must continue to strive and sometimes fail, and strive again. The planet is counting on us. We don’t need a few people doing things perfectly (as if we know what that is), but a lot of people doing the best they can.

Naysayers will say you’re not even a sincere or legitimate environmentalist if you still travel by car or plane to environmental meetings. But we all know that we can only do what we can at this point in time, and not being able to go completely carbon neutral right away isn’t a reason to stop trying and stop working together to find better solutions.

For our February 8^th Noon Network, we will meet at Prairieview Education Center in Crystal Lake to learn from Alison Stodola from the Illinois Natural History Survey about the freshwater mussels of the Fox River. She is part of a team that took a look at the entire Fox River in Illinois and Wisconsin to learn more about the distribution and status of mussels in our Fox River. Her colleagues from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will also present on this bistate study at the 11^th annual Fox River Summit on March 16^th in Burlington, Wisconsin.  

Thank you to all who responded to the statements

for 2022-23 membership renewal.

Did you renew? Check our Membership Roll at the link below.

SUBWATERSHED NEWS

A Tyler Creek Mitigation Project - Fall of 2022

The Tyler Creek Watershed Coalition (TCWC) has been involved in several erosion mitigation projects on Tyler Creek in the Garden Quarter Townhome development. TCWC has helped guide the Homeowners Association, and others who live on the creek, through the process of finding professionals who can do the needed work and then to get funding to help pay for the work that is done.

Click on their logo for details on their webpage.

An update will be shared at the Fox River Summit on March 16th.

Powerpoint presentations from January 11, 2023

Updates from our Watershed Partners

 Presenters: Friends of the Fox River, Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, The Fabulous Fox! Water Trail, The Conservation Foundation, Fox River Study Group.

Powerpoint presentations from Aug.10, 2022

Tour of the Urban Stream Research Center, Blackwell Forest Preserve, Warrenville   

  USRC Website

 Presenters: Everett Krause & Andres Ortega

Video of June 8, 2022 FREP Noon Network

Program: Kane County’s Countywide Drainage Mapping Initiative –

Where Does Your Water Go?

Presenter: Rob Linke  P.E., CFM Sr. Water Resources Engineer & Wetland

Specialist, Kane County Dept of Environmental & Water Resources

Fox Illinois River Basin TMDL: Invitation to Informational Webinar

Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023 1 PM

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is hosting a public informational webinar to introduce the DNR led water quality study titled “Total Maximum Daily Loads for Total Phosphorus and Total Suspended Solids in the Fox Illinois River Basin” (FOXIL TMDL). The informational webinar will provide an overview of the FOXIL TMDL development process, the FOXIL TMDL study area, and the results of the initial monitoring efforts.  Information Page

Registration Required.

Please contact Eric Hettler at eric.hettler@wisconsin.gov if you have any questions.

2023 Conference March 8-10, 2023

Holiday Inn — Gurnee Convention Center

Information/Registration Page

Chicago Wilderness has announced they are officially the Chicago Wilderness Alliance. They've expanded their efforts in Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, and rural Illinois, and are emphasizing their work to diversify partnerships. 

Visit their website to learn more HERE

Friends of the Fox River offers their new 2023 electronic calendar. It is interactive and you may enter your own special dates and appointments. If you aren't already a "Friend" of Friends of Fox River, visit their website to download the calendar and also take the opportunity to support them/sign up for their e-newsletter at this LINK



Some of the calendar photographs will be available for sale as full-size prints by the photographers, details for purchase will be included in the photo credits.

Becky Hoag, Communications Manager

Fox River Ecosystem Partnership

630-482-9157 info@foxriverecosystem.org

Please email Becky if you have an email to add to our mailing list or content to add to the next monthly Downstream.