LLINOIS NATURE
PRESERVES COMMISSION AGENDA
ONE HUNDRED NINETY FIFTH
MEETING
Peggy
Notebaert
Nature
Museum
McCormick Room
2430
N. Cannon Drive
Chicago
,
IL
August 7, 2007
10:00 a.m.
*Documentary Material Enclosed
Item 1: Call to Order, Roll Call, and
Introduction of Attendees
Item 2:* Adoption of Agenda
Item 3:* Approval of Minutes of the 194th Meeting Minutes,
May 1, 2007
Item 4: 2007 Meeting Schedule
October
23, 10:00 a.m. - Mt. Hope Community Hall, McLean
Item 5: Election of Officers – INPC Nominating Committee Report
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Schwegman Election
of Officers
Nominating
Committee
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 6: Election of Advisors and Consultants
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Schwegman Election
of Advisors and Consultants
Nominating
Committee
Nature
Preserves Commission
Current
Advisors:
|
Dr. William
Shilts |
Dr. George
Vander Velde |
Dr. Derek
Winstanley |
Current
Consultants:
|
Gerald Adelmann |
John Comerio |
Dr. Kenneth Robertson |
|
Bruce Boyd |
Kenneth Fiske |
Joseph Roth |
|
Marilyn Campbell |
Jerry Paulson |
Valerie Spale |
|
John White |
|
|
Item 7: INPC Staff Report
REPORT
Randy
Heidorn and John Nelson
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 8: IDNR Staff Report
REPORT
Glen
Kruse
IDNR,
Office of Resource Conservation
Item 9: Endangered Species Protection Board Staff Report
REPORT
Randy
Nyboer
Endangered
Species Protection Board Manager
Item 10:* Jackson Co. – Campbell
Lake Land
and Water Reserve
The Illinois Department of
Natural Resources wishes to permanently register 510.8 acres of natural wetland and bottomland forest as Campbell
Lake Land
and Water Reserve. The eastern portion of the proposed land and
water reserve lies within the 533-acre
wetland and forest complex known as the Campbell Lake Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI) site (#167). Of the 510.8 acres owned by the IDNR, approximately 120 acres are within
the INAI site. Of this acreage,
approximately 15 acres are a shrub
swamp/pond. The remaining acreage is wet-mesic
floodplain forest. Campbell
Lake is located at the southern
edge of the Southern Till Plain NaturalDivision
in the Mt. Vernon Hill Country Section. It
is an outstanding example of a shallow natural lake in the bottomland of
the Little Muddy River system. Protection
of the proposed Campbell
Lake Land
and Water Reserve supports objectives of the Illinois
Wildlife Action Plan (IWAP) because it will protect a wetland in the Southern Till Plain Natural Division and in the
Big Muddy River watershed, where extensive areas of river floodplain and ancient
glacial lakebeds were occupied by forested wetlands.
The Plan identifies these wetlands as scarce.
The IWAP also stated that bottomland
forests associated with wetlands such as this are important to many amphibians and reptiles, including the
crayfish frog which occurs at this site and isidentified
as a species of conservation concern in the Plan.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Judy
Faulkner Dempsey Registration
Approval
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 11:* Kankakee Co. – Addition to Sweet
Fern Savanna
Land and Water
Reserve,
Registration
Dr. Marianne Hahn wishes to
permanently register two separate tracts, totaling 11.7
acres, as additions to Sweet Fern Savanna Land and Water
Reserve. The additions will increase the amount of protected
habitat for the state-endangered sedge (Carex
cumulata) and
state-threatened eastern blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium
atlanticum). The additions will also buffer high-quality natural communities
within the existing Land and
Water Reserve. Sweet Fern
Savanna Land
and Water Reserve was registered in
2002 and is located in the Kankakee Sand Area Section of the Grand Prairie Natural Division of
Illinois. Since that time, several
additions to Sweet Fern Savanna
Land and Water Reserve have been registered by both Dr. Hahn and the Illinois Chapter of The Nature
Conservancy. The 103-acre Land and Water
Reserve is recognized on the INAI (#1581)
for its high-quality dry-mesic sand savanna.
The Land and Water Reserve
also provides habitat for 12 state-endangered or threatened plants and the
state-threatened regal fritillary butterfly (Speyeria idalia). Theregistration
of these tracts in the Kankakee Sands Conservation Opportunity Area will help meet objectives outlined in the
IWAP.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Kim
Roman Registration
Approval
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 12:* Washington and Clinton Co. – Buck
Hill Bottom
Land and Water
Reserve and Addition,
Registration
The
proposed Buck Hill
Bottom Land
and Water Reserve is a 203-acre, largely- forested
site owned by Glen and Linda Schuetz.
The proposed addition is 50 acres in size
and is owned by Glen, Linda, and Nathan Schuetz. The proposed land and water reserve, a combined total of 253 acres,
contains 18 acres of the 158.75-acre Big Open Woodland
INAI site (#1598), five acres of the 64.46-acre West End Sportsmen’s Club INAI site (#865), and a segment of the
unchannelized portion of the Kaskaskia River.
Buck Hill Bottom is located in the Effingham Plain Section of the
Southern Till Plain Natural
Division and the Lower Kaskaskia Bottomlands Conservation Opportunity Area as designated
in the IWAP. Species of greatest need of conservation
listed in the IWAP that are found on the proposed land and water reserve include yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus), red-shouldered
hawk (Buteo lineatus), red-headed woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus), Acadian flycatcher (Empidonax
virescens), hooded merganser (Lophodytes
cucullatus), Kentucky
warbler (Oporonis formosus), prothonotary
warbler (Protonotaria citrea), wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina), whip-poor-will (Caprimulgus vociferus) brown thrasher
(Toxostoma rufum), yellow-breasted chat
(Icteria virens), bobcat (Lynx rufus),
central mudminnow (Umbra limi), brook
stickleback (Culaea inconstans), and flier (Centrarchus macropterus).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Debbie
Newman Registration
Approval
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 13:* Cook Co. – Calumet City
Prairie and Marsh Nature Preserve, Dedication
The Forest Preserve District
of Cook County (FPDCC) seeks preliminary approval for dedication of 40 acres of Calumet City Prairie as
Calumet City Prairie and MarshNature
Preserve. The proposed nature preserve
is located in the Chicago Lake Plain
Section of the Northeastern Morainal Natural Division in the corporate limits
of Calumet
City, Illinois. The dune and swale topography at this site,
once a dominant feature of the
Chicago Lake Plain Section, includes sand dunes interposed with swales. The site was included on the INAI (#497) for
high-quality dry-mesic sand prairie,
mesic prairie, wet-mesic prairie, and marsh. These natural communities support four state-listed plant species
including grass pink orchid (Calopogon tuberosus), marsh St. John’s wort
(Hypericum virginicum), Richardon’s
rush (Juncus alpinus), and marsh speedwell (Veronica scutellata).
Dedication of Calumet City Prairie
and Marsh is consistent with the IWAP specifically several action steps identified for the Farmland and Prairies
Campaign and the Wetlands Campaign. Further, dedication of this site honors the
commitment of both the FPDCC and the INPC
to collaborate to preserve sites of state-wide ecological significance.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Steven
Byers Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 14:* DuPage Co. – West
Chicago Prairie
Forest Preserve
Buffer Addition to Truitt-Hoff Nature
Preserve, Dedication
The Forest Preserve District
of DuPage County (FPDDC) seeks preliminary approval for dedication of 169.5 acres of the West Chicago Prairie
Forest Preserve as a nature preserve
buffer addition to Truitt-Hoff Nature Preserve. Truitt-Hoff Nature Preserve received final approval for dedication at the
Commission’s 190th Meeting in May, 2006
(Resolution #1880). The proposed nature
preserve buffer addition is located in the
Morainal Section of the Northeastern Illinois Morainal Natural Division in West
Chicago, Illinois
and includes elements of mesic prairie, wet prairie, sedge meadow, marsh, and wet-mesic savanna. These
natural communities have responded well to more
than 20 years of restoration and management by volunteers and staff of the FPDDC and provides habitat for three
state-listed plants: western beard tongue (Penstemon tubaeflorus), little green
sedge (Carex viridula), and white
lady’s slipper (Cypripedium candidum). The site also has
breeding habitat for the Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingi), and Henslow’s
sparrow (Ammodramus henslowii). Dedication of this nature preserve
buffer addition is consistent with the IWAP, specifically
several action steps identified for the Farmland and Prairies Campaign and the Wetlands Campaign. The site supports several species identified
in the plan as “critical species” for
this natural division which includes the silver-bordered fritillary (Boloria selene), silvery checkerspot (Militaea nycteis), Blanding’s turtle, Henslow’s sparrow, sandhill crane (Grus canadensis), northern flicker (Colaptes auratus),
and red-headed woodpecker (Melanerpes
erythrocephalus). Dedication of this buffer addition will increase the size
of Truitt-Hoff Nature Preserve from 115.974 acres
to 285.475 acres.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Steven
Byers Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Leslie
Berns
Forest
Preserve District of DuPage County
Item 15:* Lee Co. – Hazelwood
Forest Nature
Preserve, Dedication
The Walgreen family proposes
to dedicate 43.7 acres as Hazelwood Forest Nature Preserve. The proposed Hazelwood Forest Nature Preserve
is part of the larger Lowell
Park natural area which has long
been the subject of preservation efforts by the
Dixon Park District and the Walgreen family. This site is located in the Oregon
Section of the Rock
River Country Natural Division. In 1966, at the suggestion of INPC Commissioner Myrtle Walgreen, and after
consult with the Dixon Park District, the
INPC passed a resolution which granted preliminary approval for dedication of Lowell
Park as an Illinois Nature
Preserve. However, over the ensuing
years, the site was never formally
dedicated. Protection efforts waned
until the mid 1990s. At that time, staff of the Dixon Park
District, the IDNR, and the INPC renewed interest in preserving the site and initiated formal plant community
surveys. The surveys were necessary to nominate Lowell
Park for inclusion on the
INAI. In 2002, the site was added to the INAI (#1622) as a category I
site containing grade B dry-mesic upland forest
and grade B mesic upland forest. Protection and restoration of this area supports several action steps for the
Forests Campaign and Invasive Species Campaign
of the IWAP.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Nelson Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 16:* Lee Co. – Lowell
Forest Nature
Preserve, Dedication
The Dixon Park District
proposes to dedicate 54.3 acres as Lowell Forest Nature Preserve. The proposed
Lowell Forest Nature Preserve is part of the larger Lowell Park natural area which has long been
the subject of preservation efforts by the Dixon Park District and the Walgreen family. This site is located
in the Oregon Section of the
Rock River Country Natural Division. In
1966, at the suggestion of INPC Commissioner
Myrtle Walgreen, and after consult with the Dixon Park District, the INPC passed a resolution which granted
preliminary approval for dedication of Lowell
Park as an Illinois Nature
Preserve. However, over the ensuing
years, the site was never formally
dedicated. Protection efforts waned
until the mid 1990s. At that time, staff of the Dixon Park
District, the IDNR, and the INPC renewed interest in preserving the site and initiated formal plant community
surveys. The surveys were necessary to nominate Lowell
Park for inclusion on the
INAI. In 2002, the site was added to the INAI (#1622) as a category I
site containing grade B dry-mesic upland forest
and grade B mesic upland forest. Protection
and restoration of this area supports
several action steps for the Forests Campaign and Invasive Species Campaign of the IWAP.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Nelson Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 17:* Cook Co. – Powderhorn Prairie and Marsh Nature Preserve,
Dedication
The Forest Preserve District
of Cook County (FPDCC) seeks final approval for dedication of 130 of the 192 acres of Powderhorn Lake Forest
Preserve as the Powderhorn Prairie
and Marsh Nature Preserve. The proposed
nature preserve is located in the
Chicago Lake Plain Section of the Northeastern Morainal Natural Division. The dune and swale topography of this
proposed nature preserve, once a dominate
feature of the Chicago Lake Plain Section, is composed of a series of six sand dunes interposed with swales. The site was included on the INAI (#1071) for
high-quality dry-mesic,
wet-mesic sand prairies, and dry-mesic sand savanna arrayed along the dunes, while the swales
support high-quality marsh. These natural communities
support a number of state-endangered or threatened species; including ten plants, three birds, one mammal, one
fish, and one reptile species. Protection and stewardship of this site is consistent with the
IWAP, specifically several action steps
identified for the Farmland and Prairies Campaign and the Wetlands Campaign. Dedication of the 30-acre site honors the
commitment of both the INPC and the FPDCC
to collaborate to preserve sites
of state-wide ecological significance and marks
the first time a parcel of land located in the City of Chicago has been
dedicated as an Illinois Nature Preserve. The Commission conferred preliminary approval
for dedication at the
Commission’s 193rd Meeting in February, 2007 (Resolution #1935).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Steven
Byers Final
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 18:* McHenry Co. – Spring Hill Buffer Addition to Boone Creek Fen
Nature Preserve, Dedication
Alan and Jeanine Dammann
propose to dedicate approximately 9.4 acres of land, located in the Morainal Section of the Northeastern Morainal
Division, as the Spring Hill buffer
addition to the Boone Creek Fen Nature Preserve. The proposed buffer addition consists of dry-mesic upland forest and seep
natural communities. The buffer addition is adjacent to
the 465-acre Boone Creek Fen and Seep INAI
site (#1015) and is located
within a ground watershed that has been designated as a Class III Special Resource Groundwater by the
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and
Illinois Pollution Control Board. This
site is one of the finest examples of graminoid
fen and seep wetlands within the State.
The entire natural area is under private
ownership, and its protection has long been recognized as a worthy goal by many local landowners. The proposed buffer addition is a
continuation of efforts by local
landowners to create a “macro-preserve” that encompasses as much of the Boone Creek Fen and Seep
Natural Area and associated recharge zones as possible. With final approval, this dedication represents the sixth
private landowner dedicationwithin
the Boone Creek Fen and Seep INAI site. Protection and restoration of the proposed buffer addition supports
action steps identified in the IWAP. The Commission
conferred preliminary approval for dedication at the Commission’s 191st
Meeting in August, 2006
(Resolution #1902).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Nelson Final
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 19:* Ogle
Co. – Addition to Pine Rock Nature Preserve, Dedication
The
Illinois Department of Natural Resources proposes to dedicate 10.91 acres as an
addition to Pine Rock Nature
Preserve. Pine Rock Nature Preserve
contains wet- mesic prairie, dry
sand prairie, dry sand savanna, and sandstone cliff communities. A prominent
outcrop of the St. Peter Sandstone is one of the notable features of the
site. Pine
Rock was dedicated in 1966 and was the 16th nature preserve in Illinois. The original
dedication comprises 58.8 acres owned by the Board of Governors of State Colleges and Universities and held and
managed by Northern Illinois
University, DeKalb. The Nature
Conservancy has long been the lead environmental advocate for the site through its land protection
program. The site name was derived from
the St.Peter sandstone
monolith which rises 50 feet high above the relict prairie and the jack pine (Pinus
banksiana) trees which historically grew on site (1877) but have since vanished.
Approval of this addition will help protect and restore the natural
resource features found within the
existing nature preserve, as well as adding significant acreage of relict high-quality oak savanna, wet-mesic
prairie, and dry sand prairie natural
communities to Pine Rock Nature Preserve. Protection and restoration of the proposed addition to Pine Rock Nature
Preserve supports action steps identified in the IWAP. The Commission conferred preliminary approval for
dedication at the Commission’s
194th Meeting in May, 2007 (Resolution #1951).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John
Nelson Final
Approval for Dedication
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 20: Winnebago Co. – Stone
Bridge Reserve
Land and Water
Reserve, Proposal to Cross
the
Land and Water Reserve with a Sewer Line
The Rock River Water
Reclamation District requests INPC approval for a permanent easement across the Stone
Bridge Reserve Land
and Water Reserve for purposes ofinstallation
and maintenance of a new sanitary sewer line extension. The proposed sanitary
sewer line will service future residential and commercial development within the Village
of Roscoe. Stone
Bridge Trail Land
and Water Reserve is owned by Roscoe
Township and was purchased with
C2000 grant monies. Its protection and management has been championed
locally by the Natural Land Institute (NLI).
This site was approved for
registration by the INPC and the IDNR in 1995.
The significant natural
features of the Stone Bridge Trail are the Hamborg
Road gravel prairie
(INAI #1042, grade A and C), scattered prairie remnants along the railroad row, the state-threatened kittentail (Besseys
bullii), and the federally threatened prairie
bush clover (Lespedeza leptostachya). In addition to the INPC approval,
the sanitary district must
obtain approval from the NLI and the IDNR, entities which also
jointly hold conservation easement
rights across Stone Bridge
Reserve Land
and Water Reserve. The primary
concern related to this request relates to a planned residential development proposed by the Rubloff Development
Group (RDG) along the Stone
Bridge Trail that will be serviced by
the proposed sewer line. The RDG
has proposed changes to their
and the NLI. The
changes include a 15-foot wide buffer to the Land and Water
Reserve that will facilitate continued
management and controlled burns of prairie remnants
located along this trail segment. The
buffer will be maintained by the futureHope
Owners Association of the residential development, and adjacent home owners
will have no rights to use or access the
buffer. RDG further agrees to build a
fence of a mutually agreed style
at the boundary between the eastern edge of the 15-foot buffer
appropriate turf grass prior to construction
activities and provide protection to the Land
and Water Reserve during the entire build-out of the development.
Access to the
buffer will be provided by gates at the northern and southern locations.
Rights of ingress,
egress, and enforcement rights will be legally granted to the NLI and the INPC in restrictive covenants.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Jeffrey
Linkenheld Approval
of Proposal
Arc
Design Resources, Inc.
John
Nelson
Nature
Preserves Commission
Item 21: Public Comment Period (3 minutes per person)
Item 22: Other Business
Item 23: Adjournment