FREP programs are free, open to the public

Reservations are not required, unless so stated

Tuesday, December 13, 2022  

FREP Annual Holiday Gathering    4:30 - ? PM

Last year we had such a wonderful time at Rob Linke's home west of St. Charles, we talked him into hosting again. We hope you will join us.

We will start with a hike in nearby Campton Hills Township's Gray Willows Farm. The moon will be almost full, so the setting will be lovely, as it was last year.

We'll follow by enjoying some food, potluck style back at Rob's.

We then end the evening at a beautiful bonfire.

We are taking RSVPs for the gathering, and then will share directions to Rob's house and details about the food.

Please respond by emailing: info@foxriverecosystem.org

Wednesday, January 11, 2023   1 PM

FREP Membership Meeting, Annual Officer Elections & Program

Location:  The Centre of Elgin, 100 Symphony Way, Elgin 60120

Program: What our Fox River Watershed Partners are focusing on in 2023 and beyond

We have invited our fellow Fox River organizations to provide overviews and updates on their current and future activities. So much is being accomplished, it is time to share and celebrate in the new year.

Participating: Friends of the Fox River, Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, The Fabulous Fox! Water Trail, The Conservation Foundation, Sierra Club Valley of the Fox, and Fox River Study Group.

FREP Executive Committee will meet at 11 AM.

Slate of Officers for Annual Elections on January 12, 2023:

President - Jeff Mengler

Vice President - Nancy Williamson

Secretary - Lucas King

Treasurer - Elizabeth Hagen-Moeller

Nominations will be accepted from the floor on 1/12. If you are interested in serving in a position, please email info@foxriverecosystem.org

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.

Program:   BiState Mussel Study



Presenters: Jesse Weinzinger, Conservation Biologist - NHC

Wisconsin Mussel Monitoring Program, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

The next Fox River Summit is Thursday, March 16, 2023  

Burlington, Wisconsin

Link to website -- watch for details & registration



FREP will again be co-sponsoring a screening for the

One Earth Film Festival in March 2023.

Watch for details in the next Downstream and on our website

OEFF Website link



As 2022 draws to a close, I reflect on FREP’s accomplishments this year, and over the last 26 years. This year was a transition for many from virtual meetings and events to in-person meetings. FREP was able to offer many programs virtually during the pandemic and transition back to hosting in-person meetings in various locations across our watershed in 2022. We don’t know what 2023 will bring, but we now know we have the technological capacity to adapt and offer programming virtually, in-person, or hybrid.

This year saw us co-host our tenth annual Fox River Summit with our partners from Wisconsin. We missed one year due to COVID, and successfully hosted a virtual conference with assistance from the UW Extension in 2021, before returning to in-person in 2022 with a highly successful conference. Plans are underway for our 11^th annual summit on March 16, 2023. One idea that was born at a prior Fox River Summit is the Fabulous Fox! Water Trail. After 6 years of planning, work, and delays beyond our control, the application was submitted in November for National Park Service designation as a national water trail. We expect a decision in early 2023.

Over the past 26 years we’ve seen a lot of changes in our watershed. FREP facilitated bringing over $10 million to the watershed for projects through state and federal grant programs in prior years. Most recently, we facilitated getting over $900,000 for restoration at Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge through Representative Lauren Underwood.

One Earth Film Festival (OEFF) is the Midwest’s premier environmental film festival, creating opportunities for understanding climate change, sustainability, and the power of human involvement. They showcase top-issue, thought-provoking environmental films and lead audiences in interactive post-film discussions focused on solutions. One Earth Film Festival is a production of Green Community Connections, an organization out of Oak Park, IL and is held each March. FREP is pleased to have joined with our co-sponsors to participate in OEFF, since 2017.  OEFF was a virtual experience for 2021 and 2022, and for 2023 we plan to be in-person for our film screening. Stay tuned for our film selection and venue information.



Join us in December for our holiday gathering, and for our 2023 program offerings. As mentioned in my message last month, we will continue to look back to see what all we have accomplished from our Integrated Management Plan for the Fox River Watershed over the last 26 years, and what we will set as our goals going forward for the next 25 years. Consider what you want our watershed and FREP to look like in 2050.

Thank you to all who have already responded to the statements

for 2022-23 membership renewal. We are at 94% of last year's dues total now and just need a last push to finish out!

Indian Creek

Watershed-based Planning



Update - Dec. 2, 2022

CMAP staff are wrapping up the dataset of best management practice (BMP) ideas submitted through the public engagement website and via stakeholder meetings and conversations. BMPs include urban and agricultural “on-the-ground” projects, local plans and policy updates, public education and outreach activities, and water quality monitoring recommendations. The on-the-ground/construction-type BMPs will be modeled by the project’s consultant, Geosyntec, to estimate how much phosphorus, nitrogen, solids, bacteria, and chloride can be reduced going to Indian Creek and the Fox River. This “pollutant load reduction” estimate, along with planning level implementation cost estimates for all the BMPs identified in the Indian Creek planning area, are among U.S. EPA’s “nine minimum elements” required in a watershed-based plan. The final plan will also include a framework for implementing the plan’s recommendations over the next ten years by outlining a general implementation schedule, criteria for determining progress, and monitoring recommendations to evaluate effectiveness, as well as by providing a list of grant funding and technical assistance providers. An interim final draft of the Indian Creek Watershed-based Plan was submitted to Illinois EPA on November 30, with the final version slated for submittal by year’s end.   

Above: A wintertime view of Indian Creek downstream of High Street in Aurora. 

  Photo by Holly Hudson

For project updates, documents, maps, and announcements, visit https://foxriverecosystem.org/fox/indian-creek. 

To see the BMP ideas submitted by stakeholders through the public engagement website, visit https://engage.cmap.illinois.gov/indian-creek-watershed-based-plan. If you have any questions about the project or would like to provide any input, please contact Holly Hudson at CMAP: hhudson@cmap.illinois.gov or 312-386-8700.  

The Core Development Team is excited to announce the application for designation into the National Park Service National Water Trails System was submitted

on Nov. 2^nd.

Between now and June 2023, the National Park Service will complete an in-depth review of our 100 page application. If it meets all the criteria, the application will be sent on to the Secretary of the Interior, Debra Haaland, for her review, and then subsequently forwarded to President Joe Biden’s office for approval.

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

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

There is a great story in a recent Friends of the Fox River Watershed Weekly:

Full-Length Fox River Trippin' with Jenni

about her paddle trip the entire length

of the Fox River in September.

Check it out HERE

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.