| The Wisconsin-Illinois Upper
Des Plaines River Ecosystem Partnership was
organized in 1996 under the Illinois Department
of Natural Resources Ecosystems Program of
Conservation 2000, a multi-year initiative to
preserve and restore Illinois ecosystems. The
partnership promotes collaboration among the
diverse organizations and private landowners who
share an interest in achieving multiple
objectives in improving conditions within the
watershed. |
The goals
of the partnership are:
• to improve water quality and reduce soil
erosion;
• to protect and restore wildlife habitat
and open space;
• to manage stormwater and the floodplain;
• to enhance recreational opportunities;
and
• to demonstrate the feasibility of
interstate and
public/private partnerships. |
| The Partnership is composed of
a diverse group of non-profit organizations,
businesses, landowners, planning agencies, and
government representatives. |
Collaboration and Public Involvement
The ecosystem partnership has initiated and
participated in a number of collaborative
activities to involve the public and address
watershed impacts. The partnership project
coordinator has worked with groups in the
watershed to identify stakeholders and their
concerns.
In June of 1998, the partnership organized and
identified funding for the Des Plaines River
Conference held at Dominican University in River
Forest, which was attended by over 200 people.
This conference led to the creation of the Des
Plaines River Alliance, a confederation of
groups that represents the entire Des Plaines
River Watershed. The partnership also
participates in the annual Des Plaines River
Canoe Expedition and works with the Des Plaines
River Watershed Team, a group focused on
flooding concerns in Cook County.
As part of the Upper Des Plaines Phase 2
advisory committee, the partnership is helping
to determine the feasibility of improvements in
flood damage reduction, environmental
restoration, and water quality. The
Kenosha–Racine Land Trust, a partner
organization, is leading the effort to preserve
and manage hundreds of acres of wetlands
adjacent to the Des Plaines River in Kenosha
County. In the fall of 1999, the partnership
offered a watershed science workshop led by Dr.
Edwin Herricks of the University of Illinois.
Another course is being planned that will build
on this experience and provide an opportunity
for residents of the Upper Des Plaines River
Watershed to gain a deeper understanding of
stream biology. |
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Watershed Restoration Action Strategy for the
Upper Des Plaines River |
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Applied Ecological Services
Cook County Forest Preserve District
Des Plaines River Alliance
Des Plaines Watershed Team
Eyring and Associates
Home Builders Association of Lake County
Integrated Lakes Management
Kenosha–Racine Land Trust
Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District
Lake County Forest Preserve District
Lake County Stormwater Management Commission
Liberty Prairie Conservancy
Liberty Prairie Foundation
Loch Lomond Property Owners Association
North Cook County Soil and Water Conservation
District
Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission
Openlands Project
Rivershire Property Owners Association
Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning
Commission
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
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| Demar Harris (left) and Buddy
Hargett of the Workforce Development Department
take questions from the audience at UDPREP's
Brown Bag Briefing. |
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| Speakers representing four
major environmental grant programs in Illinois
(above) spoke at one of UDPREP's special events
on fundraising. |
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| Participants of UDPREP's
"Bringing Back the Fish!" event (above) learn
how scientists monitor fish and insects as part
of the Des Plaines River Fish Sanctuary Project.
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Why is
watershed planning necessary?
Watershed plans provide direction and target
resources for better management and restoration
of the watershed. The plan serves as a blueprint
for improving water quality, reducing flood
damage, and protecting natural resources in a
watershed -- and for preventing existing
watershed problems from worsening in the future
as a result of imprudent land development.
Additionally, watershed planning offers an
opportunity for multiple jurisdictions with
varying priorities to coordinate their efforts
and accept their responsibility for the impact
their actions have both up and downstream. |
What is the
benefit of a watershed plan?
The data compiled for a watershed plan provides
municipalities, forest preserves, developers,
and others with information to plan according to
the lay of the land. Updated information can
provide guidance for activities such as zoning,
transportation considerations, land acquisition
and open space preservation and restoration.
Countywide watershed development standards can
also be tailored to fit each watershed. The Lake
Michigan watershed, for example, has an
intricate system of bluffs and ravines while the
North Branch of the Chicago River watershed is
flat and linear. What may be proper development
in the Lake Michigan watershed may not be
appropriate for the North Branch because
stormwater drains differently or components of
the natural drainage systems differ. |
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Who should
participate in the planning process?
Watershed stakeholders participate in watershed
planning. A stakeholder is anyone that has an
interest or ‘stake' in the watershed.
Stakeholders may include municipalities,
townships, drainage districts, homeowner
associations, developers, county agencies, lakes
management groups, landowners and local, state
and federal agencies. The watershed planning
process can't happen and won't be successful
without the input, interest and commitment of
stakeholders. Ultimately, to successfully
protect or restore a watershed, residents and
communities of the watershed have to work
together - sharing the costs and reaping the
benefits of watershed improvements. |
What is
included in a watershed management plan?
Goals & Objectives: Key watershed issues and
opportunities are identified by the project
partners and other stakeholders during the
planning process and are used to develop the
goals and objectives for the watershed plan.
Some of the common problems and opportunities in
Lake County's watersheds, for example, include
degraded water quality, flooding, erosion, need
for better natural resource protection, lack of
stream access, poor inter-jurisdictional
communication and coordination, and lack of
watershed awareness and stewardship. |
Watershed
Assessment
An important product of a watershed plan is the
watershed resource assessment. In many cases,
two strategies are used to assess the current
watershed condition. The first strategy is to
identify and compile relevant information at the
watershed level from existing studies, reports,
maps and data on topics including water quality,
current and projected land use, flood problem
areas and natural resources. This information is
collected from a variety of sources resulting in
a summary report. Maps are also produced for
analysis purposes and for project reporting. The
second strategy is to physically survey the
watershed to collect information that doesn't
already exist. |
Potential
Solutions Toolbox
The ‘toolbox' describes the potential practices
(known as best management practices or BMPs)
that can be used to improve conditions in the
watershed. The BMPs presented reflect a means to
achieve plan goals. |
Action Plan
The most important component of a watershed plan
is the action plan. The action plan is a series
of recommended programs and projects for
improving the watershed. The action plan ties
together the responsibilities of numerous
jurisdictions within the watershed so each can
contribute their ‘fair share' towards prevention
and remedies for watershed problems and
opportunities. The action plan provides a basis
for coordinating and combining resources between
jurisdictions to implement practices to improve
the watershed.
Source: Lake County Stormwater Management
Commission |
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Des Plaines
River Watershed Phase II Plan and Process
The Upper Des Plaines River Watershed is subject
to significant flooding caused by lack of
channel capacity of the mainstem Des Plaines
River and tributaries to carry major flows
during storms. Damaging floods occurred in 1986
and 1987, resulting in over $100 million in
damages. Many communities along the river, such
as Gurnee, Libertyville, Vernon Hills, River
Grove, Wheeling, Mount Prospect, Prospect
Heights, Des Plaines, Schiller Park, Franklin
Park, Elmwood Park, and Riverside suffered
significant damages.
Over the past several years, key state and local
agencies have joined to form an Advisory
Committee to identify ways to (1) provide a
higher level of protection than the 25 percent
damage reduction provided by Phase I Upper Des
Plaines River Project , and (2) incorporate
ecosystem restoration and recreation in an
overall watershed management plan for the Upper
Des Plaines and its tributaries. The Des Plaines
Phase II watershed plan, as authorized by
Congress in 1999, covers a large, 3-county
watershed that drains approximately 456 square
miles of land.
The Advisory Committee is the broad group of
stakeholders, interested parties and resource
agency personnel who advise the Project
Management Team (the Corps of Engineers and
local sponsors.)
Project Management Team members are individuals
representing local Agencies contributing funding
to the feasibility study and who are potential
project sponsors. The Team makes decisions by
consensus and provides direction and oversight
to agencies who are performing Scope of Work
tasks.
The Corps, along with key local sponsors, will
be full partners during the development of the
feasibility report. The report will focus on the
development of a multiple-objective watershed
management plan for the Upper Des Plaines River
and Tributaries. Other federal funding
opportunities will also be identified. More
information, a map, and photos are available on
the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District,
web site.
(Source: Lake County
Stormwater Management Commission) |
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