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Í Open Letter (Continued from page 1)
restoring the natural communities that represent the historical diversity of life in East-central Illinois. GPF's brochure focuses on prairie only, but also mentions a commitment to preservation and restoration. Both organizations mention opportunities for interested persons to be educated about the natural areas, their history, and their importance. While we often hold special events for educating the public, I believe we can and should do more. If people do not understand the reason we all feel so strongly about preserving these natural areas, we cannot expect their support, either monetarily or physically at workdays.
While many stewards actively advertise and hold 'special' workdays just for the enjoyment of their particular site, I believe we need to work more on making education and enjoyment of the areas a part of every workday. Most of the current site stewards and volunteers are either INHS personnel or are associated with one of the local colleges/universities. You all know so much about what you are doing and why, that I think it is often forgotten that there are individuals among us who would really like to tap into that knowledge. The wealth of information that could be shared, just at any typical workday, is basically limitless.
And this is the most important point I would like to make. As we reach out to the broader community to help us with this very important task of preservation and restoration that we have set for ourselves, let us not forget who we are doing it for: the people of the area, this generation and hopefully many more generations to come. Some of the people who may come to your workday will not have the knowledge that you do, and, in fact, they may be rather intimidated by that. Please reach out to them; make them feel welcome. Break the ice by asking a little bit about them. Ask what their background is. Find out why they came, how they heard about the event, etc. Encourage their questions and answer those questions if you can. If not, make sure to find a way to get them the answer. Offer short tours of your site at every workday, pointing out not only the special features that make it unique; but also the particular threat or problem facing the preservation of that site. And don't forget, whether you are promoting your own workday, or when talking to the publicist about announcements for your workday, to mention that there will be a tour of the site.
Only in giving people the opportunity to get to know what is so special about the areas we are protecting, can we ever expect them to know why we want to preserve them.
I challenge each of you to strive to reach out to the general community around your site, to promote the mission of PGV & GPF, and to share your passion for the prairie, grove, wetland, forest, bird, butterfly, mammal, etc. of your choice.
Sincerely, and with a passion for preservation,
Gary Beland (Volunteer Coordinator, Prairie Grove Volunteers)
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Í Controlled Burning (Continued from page 1)
the entire perimeter of the unit before commencement of the burn. Interested parties including neighbors and proper authorities must be notified of the burn before it is begun. Before lighting, weather conditions should be checked with weather authorities. Current and forecast humidity, temperature, wind speed, and wind direction must fall within prescribed limits before proceeding with the burn.
Generally prescribed burns are conducted in two seasons in central Illinois: from November into early December and from early March until the middle of April. Burns are conducted during these times because weather conditions are frequently favorable and vegetation is adequately but not excessively dry for controlled burning. Spring burns tend to subsequently favor warm season grasses. Fall burns tend to favor cool season grasses and other herbaceous vegetation. Many ecologists believe that fires may have burned naturally throughout the year whenever conditions were favorable. For this reason it would seem beneficial for many natural areas to burn them in both the fall and the spring. Most management plans call for burning only small parts of natural areas at a given time. A single piece would be re-burned at intervals of once every few years to once a decade or less frequently depending upon the management goals for the particular area.
It is only over the past few decades that ecologists have begun to understand the positive and necessary effects of fire in the landscape. But it has now become clear that fire is an integral part of the natural cycle of ecosystem fluctuation and regeneration. The Prairie Grove Volunteers and Grand Prairie Friends recognize this mandate for effective management of our natural treasures in central Illinois and are committed to conducting controlled burns in a safe and effective manner.
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Í Live with It? (Continued from page 2)
acres per 1,000 county residents in marked contrast to a statewide average of 49 acres per 1,000. This generous standard for land acquisition and the notice of a deficiency in County conservation resources were probably news to the Republican majority on the County Board which until the 2000 election was largely responsible for creating and administering the present minimal forest preserve system. But actually we cannot be confident that either party on the Board has caught the concept yet.
WHAT CAN BE DONE
As organizations and individuals we need to tell the County Board incumbents and their opponents running for election in the fall that people are not happy with county zoning regulations in general and particularly want changes that protect public and private conservation areas. And the message needs repeating.
The Department of Planning and Zoning (DPZ) and the County Board's Environment and Land Use Committee (ELUC) have been conducting a public review of our 29-year-old Zoning Ordinance for the past two years. So far only the CR and AG-1 districts of the 16 rural zoning districts have been studied but these two are major concerns for environmental interests because they include most of the land found in the stream corridors where green space is concentrated and the county preserves and parks are located. There are major problems with the Ordinance. The Big Grove flap, urban sprawl, rural subdivisions and other mushroom developments, competition and jurisdictional issues between various governmental bodies...many things indicate that the old Ordinance is a weak, inadequate policy vehicle. But it serves some interests well. It is no exaggeration to say that on any given day the Ordinance can allow whatever a majority of the County Board says it allows and deny whatever a majority says it denies.
The review process may be stalled. Policy revisions have not been discussed for months. ELUC members have different opinions about revising the Ordinance and appear to be uncertain about how to deal with the competing and passionately advocated interests of landowners, developers, conservation interests, and the Farm Bureau among others. Lacking direction from ELUC, the DPZ has little incentive to proceed. However, in this situation DPZ staff and Board Members may be more attentive to suggestions and information.
PUSH NEW IDEAS
As individuals and organizations we can support some the ideas that have been submitted to ELUC and the DPZ. The Farm Bureau, for example, proposed last summer that development be severely restricted on most of the best soils. Dan McCollum recommends that areas once occupied by historic groves and woodlands be designated county landmarks and natural features to be protected and restored, whether these areas are presently wooded or not. His letter explains how grove sites can be identified and discusses four revisions to the Ordinance that he believes are necessary. (Memo of May 18, 2001) Eight local conservationists submitted a rationale for protecting county park and preserve boundaries and suggested revisions (Memo of March 28, 2001). These and other communications on the subject can be obtained from the DPZ, or from the authors. The DPZ has developed quite a number of Comprehensive Zoning Review 2000 papers that explain the Ordinance. Most DPZ materials are free.
Realize that even a request for information signals interest and potential activity to an office or elected official. (And speaking (More Live with It? on page 5)
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