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Illinois landscape has changed dramatically since the time of European
settlement with natural lands being manipulated and developed. Illinois
has lost over 90% of its original wetlands, 99.9% of its original prairie,
and currently has 424 state and 24 federally listed threatened and endangered
species within its boundaries. Over the past 30 years, populations of
many wildlife species have fallen dramatically, and over the past decade,
expenditures for the recovery of federally endangered species have increased
more than 600%.
To prevent
the need for listing more species, reduce the need for costly recovery
efforts, and address a chronic shortage of funding for state wildlife
conservation efforts, the U. S. Congress has responded with a number of
federal aid programs. Two of those programs are the Wildlife Conservation
& Restoration Program (WCRP) and the State Wildlife Grant Program
(SWGP) program. The WCRP and SWGP are, in part, a compromise to the Conservation
and Reinvestment Act (CARA) legislation that many organizations and agencies,
including the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, continue to seek.
Since 2001, the WCRP and SWGP have translated into about $9 million in
federal aid for Illinois wildlife, in addition to the typical funding
provided by fees and excise taxes derived from hunters and anglers.
A condition
placed on the WCRP and SWGP funding has been for each state to develop
a comprehensive wildlife conservation plan. These plans, developed with
cooperation from conservation partners and input from the public, will
set a course for stewardship of all wildlife species, with special attention
given to species in greatest need of conservation. For the implementation
phase the CWCP has been renamed to the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan.
With guidance
from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, IDNR must begin implementation
of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan in 2006.
- Required
Elements ---Congress has identified eight required elements
for each state's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan through the
WCRP and SWGP legislation....(more)
- Species
in Greatest Need of Conservation ---Congress challenged each
State to develop a Wildlife Action Plan that focused on the "species
in greatest need of conservation," yet addresses the "full
array of wildlife." ....(more)
- Benefits
of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan ---The most immediate
benefit of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan for Illinois will be continued
eligibility for State Wildlife Grant Program funding after the October
1, 2005, deadline. In recent years, Illinois has received about $2 million
per year in additional federal aid for non-game wildlife conservation....(more)
For more
information on the State Wildlife Grants Program, go to: http://federalaid.fws.gov/swg/swg.html.
Partners who helped write the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan
ILLINOIS
FISH AND WILDLIFE ACTION TEAM
I. General Approach
The current
strategy Steering Committee was created to help guide the development
of Illinois’ Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan (CWCP). In
addition to IDNR staff, this Committee included representatives from the
National Wild Turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited, the Illinois Audubon
Society, and The Nature Conservancy. With federal approval of Illinois’
CWCP, now referred to as the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, the emphasis
has shifted toward implementation of the Action Plan. A new committee
(named the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team) will effectively guide,
direct, and coordinate implementation activities on a statewide scale.
This document provides the general background information, and proposed
committee structure for the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team.
A.
Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team
Over 150
agencies and organizations comprising scientists, sportsmen, conservationists,
government agencies, and other members of the community, have been part
of the planning process, and therefore, have a vested interest in working
together to more effectively achieve the wildlife and habitat goals identified
in the Illinois’ Wildlife Action Plan. All of these partners are
valuable and critical to successful implementation. Each will contribute
in different ways in implementation of the Action Plan. The proposed Illinois
Fish and Wildlife Action Team would be comprised of a smaller group of
organizations, or “core partners.”
On
a statewide scale, the core partners provide either:
(1) significant resources, staff, and/or implementation activities (tactical
needs), or (2) recruit support, function as an umbrella organization,
and/or represent key constituent interests (strategic needs). Representatives
from the core partners would have some level of decision-making capacity,
and/or the capacity to direct limited resources, within their respective
organizations.
(1) Chair:
As the State of Illinois’ primary natural resources conservation
agency, the IDNR accepted responsibility for developing and implementing
the Action Plan. Within this capacity, the IDNR would chair the Illinois
Fish and Wildlife Action Team. The IDNR chair is proposed to be at the
policy level within IDNR (Deputy Director Leslie Sgro).
(2) Illinois
Fish and Wildlife Action Team Members: Members of the Illinois Fish and
Wildlife Action Team would be comprised of core partners, providing either
tactical or strategic needs on a statewide basis. As part of the proposed
expanded Team, the IDNR has preliminarily identified core partners for
consideration (see table below). This preliminary list of potential Illinois
Fish and Wildlife Action Team core partners includes a total of 25 separate
organizations. These potential members would be formally invited to represent
their organization on the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team via a
“letter of invitation” signed by either the IDNR Director,
or perhaps the Governor.
B.
Workgroup Structure
In order
to carry out the detailed work of the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action
Team, a proposed set of topical workgroups would be created. A primary
set of workgroups would relate directly to the seven campaigns identified
in the Action Plan (streams, invasive species, forests, farmland protection,
wetlands, land/water stewardship, green cities). Two additional workgroups
would include IDNR Coordination and Teaming With Wildlife (TWW) Coalition/Advocacy
(See attached figure). All 150 plus partners are valuable and critical
to successful implementation. Proposed members of the various workgroups
would be comprised of appropriate “working partners.” This
larger group of working partners would have: (1) a vested interest in
conservation and aid in efforts to implement the Action Plan, or (2) a
focus on specific implementation of actions by campaigns. Representatives
from the working partners would have more of a technical or local level
of interest within their respective organizations.
(1) Workgroup
Leads: Core partners on the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team would
be identified to serve as workgroup leads. The primary role of the workgroup
leads entails coordinating logistics for the workgroup and reporting of
activities/progress to the Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team.
(2) Workgroup
Members: Members of the various working groups would be comprised of working
partner organizations, providing key technical and specific implementation
activities on a campaign basis. Working partner organizations would be
invited to participate on the various workgroups by the Illinois Fish
and Wildlife Action Team.
II.
Next Steps
A
. Formation of Illinois Fish and Wildlife Action Team
Letters inviting
potential core partners to participate as members of the Illinois Fish
and Wildlife Action Team have been sent. First meeting of the Illinois
Fish and Wildlife Action Team comprised of accepting core partners will
be this early fall 2006.
Get Involved!
Teaming With
Wildlife, a coalition of more than 3,000 groups, has been key to obtaining
the State Wildlife Grant funding legislation, and continues to work for
adequate funding to achieve the ambitious goals set forth in the Illinois
Wildlife Action Plan. Please visit their website at: http://www.teaming.com.
Related Links:
Huntable wildlife
Non-Game wildlife
Illinois Nature Preserves:
Office of Realty & Environmental Planning:
EcoCat:
Partners for Conservation (old C2000 program)
Ecosystem Partnerships Map:
Questions
about this site, please contact James Renn at james.renn@illinois.gov
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