Our next activity - Wednesday, July 28, 2021: |
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Wed., July 28, 2021 Annual FREP Picnic 4 PM
Location: Les Arends Forest Preserve, Rt. 31, Batavia
Help us celebrate in-person gatherings again and our 25th anniversary
Please Note date change from July 14!
We will meet at the 2nd shelter, as you enter Les Arends off of Rt. 31 (across from the Batavia Moose Lodge) Head south/turn right in the park toward the shelter.
Presentation on native freshwater mussels by Jessi DiMartini
Please bring your own food & drink for this gathering. And maybe a folding camp chair and bug spray! Spouses/dates/friends welcome.
Below -- Les Arends pavilion and the Fox River at Les Arends.
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We had our first in-person field tour in over a year in the Crystal Creek Watershed in southeastern McHenry County. I think it went well, and there were lots of good questions and interactions. We look forward to seeing the Crystal Creek Watershed Plan be implemented, including daylighting the reach that was put in a pipe in the 1950’s to facilitate the development I lived in until I finished kindergarten.
July brings us to our annual picnic. Please that note the date has changed. It will be Wednesday, July 28th beginning at 4pm. We’ll meet at the second shelter you come to in Les Arends Forest Preserve. Please bring your own food and beverages. And then we’ll learn about the freshwater mussels of our Fox River from Jessi DiMartini, who raises mussels at the Urban Stream Research Center in DuPage County.
Our state legislators returned to Springfield in June to vote on Governor Pritzker's clean energy proposal, much of it modeled after the Clean Energy Jobs Act (which I wrote about previously). However, a vote was delayed again as fossil fuel interests continued to seek exemptions, particularly for Illinois' largest polluter, the Prairie State coal plant in southwestern Illinois (which provides electricity for Batavia).
According to our friends at Sierra Club-Illinois, their allies in the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition stood strong, insisting that any energy bill act on climate by eliminating fossil fuels from our power grid by a date certain, and build wealth in communities of color with real growth in clean energy businesses.
Thank you to all who supported CEJA over the last three years - we are delayed, but not defeated, and are hopeful the legislature will return this summer to enact the bold, equitable climate bill Illinois needs now. Here’s a link to a Sierra Club page to add your signature of support. Take action for climate by sending a letter to your legislators today.
Jeff Mengler
FREP President
The presentation from our Crystal Creek Tour is on our website HERE
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Wed., August 11, 2021 FREP Noon Network Noon - 1:30 PM
Program: Roadsides As Habitat
Presented by McHenry Township & Environmental Defenders of McHenry County
We will meet initially at: McHenry Township (main offices,Johnsburg Room)
3702 N. Richmond Road Johnsburg, IL 60051
Then from there we’ll go to North Pioneer Road for a stop, and then to W Ringwood Road between Amby Land and Meadowhill Lane for a second stop.
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Wed., September 8, 2021 FREP Membership Meeting & Program 1 PM
Program: Singing Insects by Carl Strang
Location: Creek Bend Nature Center
LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve
37W700 Dean St., St. Charles, IL 60175
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Our 2021-22 annual dues statements to current members were sent out in June.
We truly appreciate your support and are grateful to all who have already sent in their dues. (see list below)
Membership can be initiated or renewed online and dues paid via PayPal at:
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Friends/Individuals:
Michael Ander
Paul Anderson
Linda Cole
Nancy A. Cox
Ilene Dailey
Bill Donnell
Kathleen Hamill and Teece Bowman
Lucas and Adam King
Gloria Klimek
Jason Pettit
Jack Schaefer
Jack Shouba
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Batavia Park District
Campton Historic Agricultural Lands, Inc. Christopher B. Burke Engineering, LTD
The Conservation Foundation
Deuchler Engineering Corporation
Environmental Aquatic Management Environmental Defenders of McHenry County.
Fox Metro Water Reclamation Dist.
Dundee Township
Environmental Aquatic Management
Kendall County SWCD
Lake County Forest Preserve Dist. Oswegoland Park District
The Soliz Group Real Estate
Village of Lake Barrington
Village of Millbrook
Village of Round Lake
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The Team developing the Fabulous Fox! Water Trail recently added itineraries and updated maps and information to fabulousfoxwatertrail.org!
Over 50 examples of planned routes are available along the Fox River in Wisconsin and Illinois. The itineraries and downloadable maps organize all the information you may need for a fun trip on the Fox and the surrounding area.
Information included in the itineraries are the locations of and distances between starting and ending access sites, portages around dams, fees and/or permits that may be required, and a description of each trip. Along the way exist many opportunities to visit historic and cultural sites as well as businesses that rent canoes or kayaks and restaurants and ice cream shops. Links to websites that provide updated information about these opportunities are in each itinerary.
To complete your trip download the appropriate map(s) to your phone or print them for your convenience.
If you would like more information or learn how to get involved, please contact
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Indian Creek Watershed-based Planning
July 6, 2021 Update
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CMAP staff finished developing an ArcGIS Field Maps app to document shoreland conditions at Poss Lake (photo above) in the Big Woods Forest Preserve as well as the stretch of the Fox River within the planning area in Aurora. Staff completed approximately two-thirds of the Poss Lake shoreland assessment over two days in mid-June, documenting shoreline erosion degree as well as riparian and aquatic zone conditions. One more day at the lake ought to do it, then a few days along the Fox River. Do wave if you happen to be paddling by!
Staff also completed development of an ArcGIS Field Maps/Survey 123 combination app to use for recording stream physical conditions assessment information. After doing a test run to ensure all the needed data fields are included and the app is functioning as intended, stream assessment field work is expected to begin during July and continue through the summer, dependent on the availability and scheduling of partner staff to join a CMAP staff person each day when wading Indian Creek.
The project’s modeling consultant, Geosyntec, finalized the HSPF model’s hydrology, completed the model’s water quality calibration for several pollutants (total phosphorus, total nitrogen, suspended solids, fecal coliform, and chloride), and applied the model to simulate pollutant loadings for current land use conditions as well as forecasted, future land use. A draft technical report describing the HSPF model update process, assumptions, and pollutant load estimates is under review.
The shoreland, stream, and detention basin assessment information, along with the pollutant load estimates, will be incorporated into the final watershed resource inventory (WRI) due at the end of the summer. Then development of the watershed-based plan will move to the forefront where engagement activities with watershed stakeholders will help identify opportunities to protect and improve water and aquatic habitat quality throughout the Indian Creek planning area – so stayed tuned on how you can participate!
For project updates, documents, maps, and announcements, please visit https://foxriverecosystem.org/fox/indian-creek. If you would like to be added to the contact list for Indian Creek Watershed-based Planning news and events, or have any questions about the project, please contact Holly Hudson at CMAP: hhudson@cmap.illinois.gov or 312-386-8700. |
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Their mission is to engage communities in productive conversation about responsible land use that balances farming, natural resources, climate resiliency and economic development.
A Hackmatack area/McHenry County Dialogue will take place at the Holiday Inn Crystal Lake on Tuesday, July 27, 2021. Agenda
There is a Will County dialog on Thursday, July 29. Agenda & Info
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Farmland is the most abundant land use in Northeastern Illinois. It can support habitat for important insects and wildlife; improve water quality, mitigate flooding and help offset the most severe effects of climate change. Farmland sustains livelihoods and grows food for the region’s residents.
The futures of food, farming, and conservation are becoming increasingly interwoven in the farmland of Northeastern Illinois.
The Dialogues on the Future of Food, Farming and Conservation bring together a broad range of community stakeholders to discuss current trends in farming and natural resource protection, and how we can shape future strategies and decisions around local land use together, ensuring our region’s agricultural heritage and conservation lands are sustained and protected.
Steering Committee:
Nathan Aaberg, Liberty Prairie Foundation
Rob Baren, Illinois Department of Agriculture
Lenore Beyer, Kinship Foundation
Janice Hill, Acreage43560, LLC
Austin Omer, Illinois Farm Bureau
Kris Reynolds, American Farmland Trust
John Rogner, Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Tyler Strom, Illinois Agri-Food Alliance
Daniel Suarez, Audubon Great Lakes
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Community Recycling Information |
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Becky Hoag, Communications Manager
Fox River Ecosystem Partnership
Please email Becky if you have an email to add to our mailing list or content to add to the next monthly Downstream.
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