Archive: Illinois River Focus Area
Last updated: October 26, 2001
Background
The Illinois River begins at the confluence of the Des Plaines and Kankakee rivers near Chicago, Ill., and flows 237 miles to the Mississippi River at Grafton, Ill. The natural resources of the river supported the lives and culture of Native Ameri- cans into the early 1800s. Early explorers and settlers depended on the river for fish, waterfowl, and fur to meet their needs. Although the river still provides important habitat for aquatic communities and migratory birds, the pristine nature and biological diversity of the Illinois River and its 28,000 square mile watershed have undergone dramatic changes. Streams were channelized, dammed, dredged and leveed. Nearly all tallgrass prairie and savanna, and 90 percent of wetlands, were converted to other uses to support an exploding human population. Important natural resources were exploited and badly depleted without regard for the needs of future generations. Pollutants and sediments choked the life out of the river and associated backwaters. Presently, interest and opportunities abound for combined, coordinated, and sustained actions by river proponents to protect, restore, and enhance the natural nvenne processes for fish, wildlife, and plant communities and for the use and enjoyment of the American people.
Weis Lake - Crow Creek Project Area
Description of Projects
The Illinois River Focus Area Team will assist in identifying funding sources
and programs for use by the work group of the Marshall-Putman Soil and Water
Conservation District in developing and implementing a Watershed Conservation
Plan. The plan will indude Goose and Weis Lakes. Use of Best Management Practices,
stream bank stabilization, sediment basins, and water control structures
will reduce the amount of sediments reaching these lakes. A combination of
water control structures, dredging, and reestablishment of vegetation will
be used to restore habitat in both lakes. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S.
Geological Survey, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and Ducks Unlimited
are partners in this project.
On-The-Ground Project
The Illinois River Focus Area Team of the Midwest Natural Resources Group identified the Crow Creek Watershed, including Weis Lake (Cameron Division of the Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge) and Goose Lake (Sparland Unit of the Marshall County Fish and Wildlife Area), as a site-specific habitat restoration project within the Illinois River Focus Area. More than 70 percent of the 54,000 acre Crow Creek watershed is in agriculture production. Elevations range from 470 to 900 feet above sea level with slopes up to 18 percent in the upper watershed. Soil erosion from agricultural production and stream banks has filled in bottomland lakes, reducing the volume of Goose and Weis Lakes by as much as 85 percent. Degradation of these lakes has resulted in substantial decline in fish and waterfowl use and hunting and fishing opportunities.
Intergovernmental Partnership Agreement
On May 10, 2000, The U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Army, and Interior; the U.S. Environ- mental Protection Agency Federal Highway Administration, Maritime Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard signed an Intergovernmental Partnership Agreement stating that they shall work, in partnership with state and local govern- ments, non-governmental organizations, private landowners and individuals, to restore and protect the ecological integrity of the Illinois River Basin in a manner consistent with reducing flood damage, protection of private property rights and maintaining an effective navigation system.
For More Information
Contact Ross Adams, Focus Area Team Leader
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Illinois River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
Phone: 309/535-2290
Federal Relay Number: 1-800-877-8339