ILLINOIS NATURE PRESERVES COMMISSION AGENDA
ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-EIGHTH MEETING
Illinois State Library
300 South Second Street
Springfield, Illinois
February 3, 1998 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 157th Meeting, October 28, 1997
Item 4:* Next Meeting Schedule
Item 5: INPC Staff Report
REPORT
Don McFall and Randy Heidorn
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 6: IDNR Staff Report
REPORT
Carl Becker
IDNR, Division of Natural Heritage
Item 7:* Cook Co. -- Superior Street Prairie Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Superior Street Prairie is 33.5 acres of dry-mesic sand savanna, mesic sand prairie, wet
prairie and sedge meadow owned by the Calumet Memorial Park District. It is located
in the Chicago Lake Plain Section of the Northeastern Morainal Natural Division. The
prairie was originally identified by the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI #500) as
the Thornton Fractional North High School Prairie. The site contains a Grade A dry-mesic sand savanna, Grade B mesic sand prairie, wet prairie and sedge meadow. The
state endangered grass pink orchid (Calopogon tuberosus), round-leaved sundew
(Drosera rotundifolia), and northern panic grass (Panicum boreale) are among the three
hundred species of plants growing in the proposed reserve. Approval of this
registration was deferred from the October 28, 1997 meeting at the request of the
landowner.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Brian Reilly
Registration Approval
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 8:* Hancock Co. -- Allison Savanna Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Allison Savanna is an 8-acre tract, part of a former railroad line in west central Illinois.
The proposed Land and Water Reserve contains remnants of dry mesic, mesic and wet
mesic savanna natural communities of the Galesburg Section of the Western Forest-Prairie Natural Division. Allison Savanna provides habitat for many of the typical
prairie and savanna plants as well as two endangered species of plants; savanna blazing
star (Liatris scariosa var. nieuwlandii) and bunch flower (Melanthium virginicum).
The proposed reserve is owned by Mr. Tom Kolleck of Carthage.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Angella Moorehouse
Registration Approval
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 9:* Jersey Co. -- Brainerd Cave Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Brainerd Cave is a significant example of a terrestrial cave community and serves as a
hibernaculum for a moderate number of bats. The cave was recognized by the INAI
(#605). The 2-acre site is located in upland forest within Pere Marquette State
Park and is owned and managed by IDNR. Approval of this registration was deferred
from the October 28, 1997 meeting due to a correction needed in the legal description.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Tara Gibbs
Registration Approval
IDNR, Division of Natural Heritage
Item 10:* Kankakee Co. -- Aroma Forest Preserve Land and Water Reserve, Registration
The Kankakee River Valley Forest Preserve District would like to register 46.5 acres as
a Land and Water Reserve. Natural community types found on the proposed reserve
are dry sand prairie, dry sand savanna, dry-mesic sand savanna, sedge meadow, and
mesic floodplain forest. During the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI), .2 of an
acre of grade-B dry sand prairie was identified in the Kankakee Sand Area Section of
the Grand Prairie Natural Division. The grade-C sedge meadow were identified by
INAI field investigators as notable for Kankakee County. The area qualifies for a Land
and Water Reserve due to its potential restoration of natural community types, which
existed in northern Illinois at the time of settlement by European immigrants.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Brian Reilly, Nature Preserves Comm. Registration
Approval
Doug Short - Kankakee River Valley
Forest Preserve District
Item 11:* Lawrence Co. -- Red Hills Seep Springs Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Red Hills Seep Springs is an 11-acre site within Red Hills State Park in southeastern
Illinois. The proposed reserve is characterized by two forested ravines, each of which
contains a seep. The INAI recognized the site INAI (#1010) as an outstanding example
of the original seep natural communities of the the Mt. Vernon Hill Country Section of
the Southern Till Plain Natural Division. Red Hills Seep Springs provides habitat for a
state threatened salamander and two endangered species of plants. The site is owned
and managed by IDNR.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Terry Esker Registration
Approval
IDNR, Division of Natural Heritage
Item 12:* Macoupin Co. and Montgomery Co. -- Gillespie Prairie Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Gillespie Prairie is a 7-mile stretch of former railroad right-of-way that contains several
good quality remnants of mesic prairie. The 78-acre tract is owned and managed by
IDNR. Gillespie Prairie was included on the INAI (#1337) because it supports
populations of two state listed plant species, the state endangered eastern blue-eyed
grass (Sisyrinchium atlanticum) and state threatened ear-leaved foxglove (Tomanthera
auriculata). Approval of this registration was deferred from the October 28, 1997
meeting because the registration document had not been executed by the landowner.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Mark Phipps
Registration Approval
IDNR, Division of Natural Heritage
Item 13:* McHenry County - Wheeler Fen Land and Water Reserve, Registration
Wheeler Fen is a 26.4 acre mosaic of graminoid fen, sedge meadow, and uplands
located in McHenry County within the Morainal Section of the Northeastern Morainal
Natural Division of Illinois. The proposed Wheeler Fen Land and Water Reserve is
owned in part by the City of McHenry (17.8 acres) and McHenry County (8.6 acres).
The commitment from the owners to protect Wheeler Fen as a Land and Water Reserve
are linked with a McHenry County Highway Department plan to construct an arterial
road along the southern border of the proposed Land and Water Reserve. Furthermore,
the US Army Corps of Engineers has issued a permit to discharge fill material to
facilitate construction of this arterial road with the proviso that 26.4 acres of Wheeler
Fen be considered for protection as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve. Two state
threatened plant species have been recorded from the proposed Wheeler Fen Land &
Water Reserve and include the Early fen sedge (Carex crawei ) and the Common
yellow lake sedge (Carex rostrata var. utriculata). Preservation of Wheeler Fen as a
Land and Water Reserve will protect a rare graminoid fen community located in
Illinois' most rapidly developing county.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Steve Byers
Registration Approval of City of McHenry Tract
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 14:* Marshall Co. -- Hopewell Hill Prairies Nature Preserve, Dedication
Hopewell Hill Prairies, owned by Maury Brucker and Emiko Yang, is an approximately
1-acre tract within the 78-acre Hopewell Estates Hill Prairies Natural Area (INAI
#231), which is within the Peoria Wilds Resource Rich Area. The tract contains open
woodlands on the uplands and ravine bottoms with Grade A glacial drift hill prairie on
the steep southwestern-facing slopes. Only 51.5 acres of glacial drift hill prairie were
identified statewide on the original INAI. Schreber's aster (Aster schreberi)(state
threatened and rated as highly conservative) has been found in the woodlands at the
proposed preserve. On the prairie openings, several conservative plant species have
been identified, including white prairie clover (Dalea candida), purple prairie clover
(D. Purpurea), lead plant (Amorpha canescens), and prairie dropseed (Sporobolus
heterolepis). The presence of these species indicates the site has remained relatively
undisturbed, which also appears to be the case for other hill prairie openings of the 78-acre INAI natural area-all of which is privately owned and currently unprotected.
Dedication of this site as an Illinois Nature Preserve would be an important first step
toward preservation of the other glacial drift hill prairie openings at the INAI natural
area.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Tom Lerczak Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 15:* Vermilion Co. -- Westfall Prairie Restoration Nature Preserve, Dedication
The Vermilion County Conservation District proposes to dedicate the approximately
40-acre Doris Westfall Prairie Restoration as an Illinois Nature Preserve in honor of its
founder, Doris Westfall. This high-quality prairie restoration provides habitat for the
State endangered Henslow's Sparrow (Ammodramus henslowii). Viable populations of
the state endangered royal catchfly (Silene regia) and the state threatened
queen-of-the-prairie (Filipendula rubra) were established here from seed. This prairie
restoration has been nominated for inclusion in the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory.
The Illinois Plant Translocation and Restoration Policy allows nature preserve
dedication of qualifying restorations. However, no such restorations have been
proposed or dedicated as a nature preserve yet.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Marilyn Campbell Preliminary
Approval for Dedication
Vermilion Co. Conservation District
Item 16:* LaSalle Co. -- Mitchell's Grove Nature Preserve, Dedication
Mitchell's Grove is a 184-acre tract owned and managed by IDNR. The grove is a
diverse area located at the confluence of Tomahawk Creek and the Little Vermilion
River. The site contains upland forest, floodplain forest, sandstone rock outcrops,
springs and seeps, frontage on the two major streams, remnant hill prairie and several
northern relict species of plants. The proposed preserve provides habitat for the state
threatened northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis), forked aster (Aster furcatus) and
spotted coral root orchid (Corallorhiza maculata). INPC granted preliminary approval
for dedication of Mitchell's Grove Nature Preserve at its 157th meeting in October,
1997 (Resolution #1378).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Todd Bittner Final
Approval for Dedication
IDNR, Division of Natural Heritage
Item 17:* McHenry Co. -- Addition to Julia M. & Royce L. Parker Fen Nature Preserve, Dedication
Ms. Jewel Hahn seeks final approval for dedication of a 3-acre addition as nature
preserve buffer to Parker Fen Nature Preserve. This addition received preliminary
approval for dedication at INPC's 157th Meeting held October, 1997 (Resolution
#1382). Parker Fen Nature Preserve was included on the INAI (#863) and received
final approval for dedication at INPC's 107th Meeting in October, 1985 (Resolution
#874). Parker Fen supports populations of the state endangered Common bog arrow
grass (Triglochin maritimum) and state threatened beaked spike rush (Eleochris
rostellata). Final approval will guarantee protection of important groundwater
resources, maintain existing surface hydrology, and facilitate a landowner contact
program designed to protect important groundwater recharge zones for Parker Fen
Nature Preserve.
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
Steven Byers
Final Approval for Dedication
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 18:* McHenry County - Spring Hollow Addition to Boone Creek Fen Nature Preserve, Dedication
Ms. Elizabeth Babcock seeks final approval for dedication of 32.5 acres of mesic
upland forest, sedge meadow, and seep natural plant communities as nature preserve
buffer to Boone Creek Fen Nature Preserve. This addition received preliminary
approval for dedication at INPC's 157th Meeting held in October, 1997, (Resolution
#1380). Over 150 plant species and over 100 bird species have been sited and recorded
from Spring Hollow. Boone Creek Fen was identified on the INAI (#1015) and was
recently conferred final approval for dedication at INPC's 156th Meeeting in August,
1997 (Resolution #1376). Protection of Spring Hollow will save important
groundwater resources, maintain high water quality, and result in preservation of
wetland communities in Boone Creek Fen valley. In 1977, Spring Hollow was granted
the first conservation easement in Illinois with the Natural Land Institute. Final
approval will guarantee protection of Spring Hollow started 20 years ago and further
protect Boone Creek Fen Nature Preserve.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE DETERMINED
Steven Byers Final
Approval for Dedication
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 19:* Ogle Co. -- Piros Prairie Nature Preserve, Dedication
Piros Prairie is an approximately six-acre tract of wet-mesic prairie and sedge meadow
located in Ogle County. The site was recently added to the INAI and represents two
high quality community types that are rare within the Oregon Section of the Rock River
Hill Country Natural Division of Illinois. The prairie is owned by Sheryl Piros. It is
her desire to dedicate the six-acre prairie/wetland tract as an Illinois Nature Preserve
and to dedicate an additional two acres or so of surrounding land as nature preserve
buffer.
The Commission granted preliminary approval for dedication of Piros Prairie Nature
Preserve at its 157th meeting in October, 1997 (Resolution #1383).
REPORT ACTION
TO BE CONSIDERED
John Alesandrini Final
Approval for Dedication
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 20:* Pope Co. -- Spivey's Valley Glade Nature Preserve, Dedication
The proposed Spivey's Valley Glade Nature Preserve, owned by Dan and Georgia
Spivey, is 18.4 acres in size and has been recently added to the INAI. Located in
eastern Pope County near the Ohio River, the area contains Grade A limestone glade
and Grade A limestone barrens communities. Spivey's Valley Glade is unique in that it
occurs within a narrow drainage in Mississippian-aged sandstone capped hills. The
sandstone has been scoured out exposing the limestone. This is the only valley glade in
southern Illinois and perhaps in Illinois. Three listed plant species occur there,
including the largest reproducing population of the state threatened climbing milkweed
(Matelea obliqua), the state endangered wild lettuce (Lactuca hirsuta sanguinea) and
the state threatened aster (Aster undulatus). Spivey's Valley Glade Nature Preserve was
granted preliminary approval by INPC at its 157th meeting in October, 1997
(Resolution #1384).
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Judy Faulkner
Final Approval for Dedication
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 21: Lake Co. -- Illinois Beach Nature Preserve, Report on Asbestos Contamination.
REPORT
ACTION TO BE CONSIDERED
Stan Yonkauski IDNR, Authorization
of Asbestos Removal
Office of Legal Counsel
Item 22:* Johnson Co. -- Heron Pond-Little Black Slough Nature Preserve, Update on Heron Pond erosion control
REPORT
Randy Heidorn
Nature Preserves Commission
Item 23: Public Comment Period (3 minutes per person)
Item 24: Other Business
Item 25: Adjournment