Recent River Prairie Group Programs

This is a recap of our two most recent program meetings.

On October 16th, Dr. Jean Marie Kauth gave an engaging presentation on environmental health with a focus on chemicals that affect our wellbeing. A professor at Benedictine University, she has authored numerous books including Environmental Legacies of the Copernican Universe.

On November 20, Brittany Rogness of the Illinois Bat Conservation Program provided an excellent review of efforts to conserve bats in Illinois, including field work to monitor the populations of the thirteen species of bats found in Illinois.

She encouraged people to erect bat houses, but cautioned that they should be properly designed, following guidelines from Bat Conservation International.

DuPage Monarch Project Recognizes Five Conservation Champions

Bumblebees and butterflies are in trouble. They’re declining in part because there are fewer places where they can find food and shelter. There is widespread concern about what this will mean for the health of local ecosystems and crops like tomatoes that rely on native bees for pollination. The members of the DuPage Monarch Project are stepping up to protect the pollinators we all depend on.

This year DuPage Monarch Project recognized five pollinator conservation champions for their outstanding contributions to making DuPage County a safe haven for bees and butterflies.

Sugar Creek Golf Course Goes Green

Elmhurst Park District and the Village of Villa Park are the co-owners and managers of the Sugar Creek Golf Course. They also share a vision for how the course can offer an enjoyable round of golf and provide valuable ecological services for their communities. The Sugar Creek Golf Course Restoration Project made that vision a reality.

The SCGC Project was years in the making. It relied on the support and participation of the Elmhurst Park District, Village of Villa Park, Sugar Creek Golf Course, DuPage County, and the Illinois EPA. DuPage County Stormwater Management played a pivotal role in getting the project off the ground when it recognized that restoring the section of Sugar Creek that meanders through the course would provide natural flood control and improve the water quality of both Sugar and Salt Creek.

Along with dam removal and shoreline stabilization, the final plan included removing invasive species and adding new naturalized areas. Pollinator habitat was established with 18,000 plugs, 46 native trees, and 139 native shrubs, and by seeding 2.5 acres with native species.

There is growing pressure to find land that can be naturalized for pollinators. The Sugar Creek Golf Course Restoration Project has demonstrated that the managed greens of a golf course can co-exist with healthy, biodiverse natural areas.

Elmhurst Park District, Village of Villa Park, and Sugar Creek Golf Course received the Jane Foulser Habitat Award for the Sugar Creek Golf Course Restoration Project.

Science, Education, and Fun on the Russell Kirt Prairie

Illinois was once covered with prairies filled with tall grasses and colorful flowers. The grand expanses of prairie are now gone. It is the small remnants of the original prairies and recent restorations that many birds, bees and butterflies rely on for their food and shelter. These are also the places where people can enjoy and connect with nature.

Anna Bakker is making the Russell Kirt Prairie at the College of DuPage an inviting place for young and old to experience the native Illinois landscape. In the 18 months since Ms. Bakker was hired to manage the College of DuPage’s natural areas, she has instituted a wide range of educational, volunteer, scientific, and community science opportunities for COD students, staff and the general public. There are classes to take and events to attend. Visitors can become community scientists by adding their observations of monarchs to the annual butterfly count. Volunteers have hands-on encounters with native plant communities while planting and collecting seeds. There’s even a tea party on the prairie. Guests enjoy a cup of tea while listening to stories of how indigenous people and pioneers used prairie plants for food and medicine.

Ms. Bakker makes it easy to stay up to date about what’s happening at COD’s natural areas with a monthly newsletter and frequent Facebook posts. 

Anna Bakker received the Pat Miller Community Engagement Award for offering diverse, creative, and educational outreach about native plants, monarch butterflies, and pollinators.

Passion-Fueled Activism Adds Habitat for Pollinators

Mary Onorad isn’t shy about making the most of every chance to help pollinators. In the four short years since learning about the dramatic decline of monarch butterflies, she has gone from planting milkweed in her backyard to launching several pollinator-friendly gardens.

Ms. Onorad had a long history of volunteering with the Woodridge Rotary Club when she learned about Rotary International’s partnership with Operation Pollination. Operation Pollination is a collaborative framework for increasing, enhancing, and maintaining pollinator habitat. It was a good fit with her organizing and networking skills. She just needed the right opportunity to get started.

A project turned up when Ms. Onorad heard about a newly seeded bioswale at the 83^rd Street Park in Woodridge that could use a helping hand. Progress on the bioswale had stalled when park district staff were redirected to cleaning up the damage from a tornado that swept through Woodridge in June 2021.  

The bioswale needed two things, more plants and additional species. Adding plants would crowd out weeds, increase biodiversity, and improve appeal. Ms. Onorad collaborated with Bruce Blake, a habitat specialist with the DuPage Monarch Project, on developing a plant list and overseeing plant installation. She applied for and received a grant from Illinois American Water that covered the cost of the plants and an interpretative sign.

Ms. Onorad barely paused after completing the bioswale before turning her attention to the monarch butterfly’s winter habitat in Mexico. Rotary International was one of the many sponsors of the 60,000 Tree Challenge, an educational and fundraising effort for purchasing trees for the monarch sanctuary in El Rosario, Mexico. As part of the Challenge, a boxcar emblazoned with a monarch butterfly was traveling from Canada to Mexico with a stop scheduled in Bensenville. She took it upon herself to notify local Rotarians about the Challenge and the event hosted by the Elmhurst Park District at the Bensenville rail yard, where there were presentations about monarch butterflies and Operation Pollination’s approach to habitat restoration. 

Establishing Fish Passage on the West Branch DuPage River

By Stephen McCracken

Dam removal can be an effective technique to restore life and function to river systems, but it’s not always an option. Such is the case for the Fawell Dam, on the West Branch of the DuPage River, McDowell Grove Forest Preserve in northern Naperville.

Mapping of West Branch fish species by the DuPage River Salt Creek Workgroup (DRSCW) found that 12 species dropped out of the fish community in the 26 miles of mainstem river upstream of the dam. These species include relatively large fish like the flathead catfish to small species like the banded darter and emerald shiner. However, because the dam protects valuable infrastructure in downtown Naperville from flooding, removal was not a possibility.

The dam was built by the State of Illinois in the late 1960s. It fell into disuse for a decade before being brought back into use by DuPage County Stormwater Management (DC SWM), its current owner, in the late 1990s. It’s an impressive structure consisting of a concrete spillway made up of three large box culverts flanked by a 20-foot-high dike of over 1000 feet in length. Flow through the culverts can be modulated using movable gates on the upstream face of the dam. This allows for temporary inundations of the McDowell Grove Forest Preserve, a purpose the land was originally set aside for, as opposed to flooding in downtown Naperville. The culvert floors have a steep drop-off from their elevated upstream lip, which appears to be where the barrier to fish passage lies.

Image 1.  Fawell Dam spillway observed from downstream (looking north). The three culverts are clearly visible. The rushing water inside the culverts marks the steep gradient floor section. 

After reviewing a number of possible solutions, DC SWM and the DRSCW settled on installing a Kynard Alternating Side-Baffle Fishway (KASBF) through the eastern-most culvert. The metal structure relies on alternating baffles (see image below) to create a series of eddies that, hopefully, will allow even small-bodied fish to navigate the steep gradient change inside the culvert. The is currently under permitting and is scheduled to be installed in the first half of 2025.

Image 2.  A KASBF on the Eel River in Indiana, showing the alternating baffles. The system to be placed at Fawell has custom-designed baffle spacing and angles, as well as a removable section so that Fawell’s upstream floodgates can be periodically closed.  

Two low-head dams (McDowell Forest Preserve Dam and the Warrenville Dam) upstream of Fawell Dam were removed from the West Branch in 2008 and 2011, respectively. Removal was completed by the DC SWM and the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. Current data suggests that Fawell is the only remaining barrier to fish passage on the main stem of the river.

The Fawell Project is run jointly by DC SWM and the DRSCW. Funding for the project comes from the DRSCW’s Special Conditions Project Fund.

New Year's Day hike at Indiana Dunes

By Bob Brubaker

It is getting close to that time of year again, the annual New Year’s Day hike at the Indiana Dunes with the Outings Leaders of the River Prairie Group!

We hope you will consider joining us for this year’s New Year’s Day hike at the Indiana Dunes. Feel the "cool" breeze on your face, breathe in the clean air, listen to the birds singing. Just enjoy being outside. Start out the New Year on the right foot! We will hike about 4 miles, and depending on how we are feeling and the weather, may go for 2 to 4 more on another trail.

Currently, the plan is for mostly inland trails, where it is more sheltered from the winter winds. We will stop briefly for a lunch break on the trail or between hikes by the vehicles.   

This outing is generally held rain, snow, or shine; however, plans may be altered or canceled depending on forecasted conditions, especially if it’s sleeting.

The trip will start at 11 AM Chicago time to give you a bit more time on the holiday. To sign up, please use this online form. 

Just remember to follow the instructions on the site to make sure you sign the digital version of the waiver. Also, a separate signup is needed for each person coming.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. FYI, the signup will probably close by December 22 if not sooner if filled up. Bob Brubaker, nlubob@yahoo.com

Despite national trend, environmentalists win in DuPage County and Illinois

By Linda Sullivan

Bucking a national trend that put climate-change deniers and people openly hostile to environmental protection in charge at many levels, voters in Illinois elected a slate of Sierra Club-endorsed environmental champions, both to Congress and to the Illinois General Assembly and DuPage Forest Preserve Commission. We have reason for optimism that in Illinois, at least, there is much that will be accomplished to protect our environment.

Sierra Club members worked hard to elect these champions, first going through the often-laborious process of endorsing them, then helping elect them, mainly knocking doors and some phone banking.

River Prairie Group collaborated with other Illinois Sierra Club groups to endorse and re-elect five environmental champions to Congress: Delia Ramirez, IL-03; Sean Casten, IL-06; Raja Krishnamoorthi, IL-08; Bill Foster, IL-11; and Lauren Underwood, IL-14.

In the Illinois General Assembly’s Senate, Sen. Karina Villa, S-25, RPG’s only environmental champion up for reelection this year, easily won.

In the Illinois House, several environmental champions in DuPage faced stiff challenges. RPG held well-attended canvasses for each. Thankfully, all of the representatives that we depend on to pass planet-protecting legislation will be returning to the House.

Of 11 endorsements made by RPG, these nine candidates for State Representative won: Janet Yang Rohr, 41; Terra Costa Howard, 42; Marti Deuter, 45; Diane Blair Sherlock, 46; Maura Hirschauer, 49; Anne Stava Murray, 81; Stephanie Kifowit, 84; and Avelar Dagmara, 85.

RPG had two losses in districts where candidates challenged incumbents: Maria Vesey, 48; and Suzane Akhris, 82.

As of this writing, District 47 votes were still being counted. Jackie Williamson was just 300 votes behind in her attempt to unseat climate-change denier Amy Grant.

River Prairie Group is proud to announce that its vice chairman, Jeff Gahris, has won a third term on the DuPage Forest Preserve Commission. Jeff has been active in the River Prairie Group for about two decades, serving on the RPG’s board for more than 10 years and as chairman for two years, before stepping down after he won his first election to the Forest Preserve Commission four years ago. Since then, he has served as Vice Chairman.  

Jeff said his proudest achievement on the Commission was advocating for a formal sustainability plan. This plan has already resulted in solar installations on FPD buildings and a net zero remodel of Willowbrook Wildlife Center. These innovations, built largely with grant money, are not only key to fighting climate change but also will save taxpayers money in energy costs.

"I'm grateful for public support during my recent reelection, and I look forward to working on sustainability initiatives, natural area acquisition and restoration, and better trail access for the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County," he said.

The referendum to increase funding for the DuPage Forest Preserve District passed overwhelmingly.

Shout out to all the volunteers who volunteered their time to go through the meticulous process of making these endorsements and all the people who volunteered their time to canvass and phonebank for these candidates.

To all our endorsed candidates whether you won or lost, a huge thank-you for your public service and for all you do to protect the planet.

Solar getaway weekend

By Jan Bradford

It used to be that a farmer raised corn to feed his animals and a garden to feed his family. But let us see how the future looks on my Solar trip getaway in Rochelle.

Our trip started at a solar-powered farm with no animals to feed. First, we learned that the cost of solar for the farm was originally $100K, but with incentives and rebates they reduced that cost and made it affordable, with a payback period of about 5 years. Their current electric bill is $15 a month for the guy to read the meter. The panels generate enough electricity to cover all the farm’s electric cost. The excess electric generated in the summer pays for the electric in the winter.

They also had silo towers across the road for their corn. The set-up was about the same in costs and savings. It was interesting to learn that the corn is harvested, put in big trucks in the fields, then driven to these silo towers and emptied into the towers. The two towers each hold 320 bushels of corn, or 18,000 pounds. The solar panels generate electricity for the fans and gas heaters to dry the corn so it does not mold. The corn is then sold to the ethanol plant.

Our next stop was learning about growing vegetables and microgreens off grid--solar panels only.

Here we learned about growing plants with just water and lights. And we actually started plants in jars and in the microgreen trays from seed. We learned that several organizations were interested in this method to feed people now and in the future. 

This is what the microgreens looked like when we planted and after one week.

Later, we did some shopping and toured the piano mall. Then we checked into our rooms and went to dinner. After dinner we had a chocolate tasting (70% cocoa won), played some games, and won some prizes. It was lots of fun! 

The following day we had breakfast at White Pines Restaurant, had another person join us, and hiked. It was a warm day, and we enjoyed being with nature and its wonderful fall colors. We all had a good time on this special weekend.

Naperville should say "No" to early IMEA contract renewal

 By Marc Willensky

Many River Prairie Group Sierra Club members are aware that IMEA (Illinois Municipal Electric Agency) wants their municipal customers, which includes Naperville, to renew their energy contracts early. This has been getting a lot of attention at the Naperville City Council, and local organizations, including ours, have spoken out against the renewal. The IMEA is one of nine partners that own and operate the Prairie State Energy Campus (PSEC), which is a coal mine/coal-fired power plant in Washington County, Illinois, and is the largest carbon dioxide polluter in our state. It's estimated that the soot pollution is responsible for 76 premature deaths in Illinois each year. 

Let's understand some key facts about the contract and renewal:

-The initial contract was signed in 2007 and expires in 2040; or 2035 at the earliest with a 5-year contract termination required. Either Naperville or IMEA can initiate the termination.
-IMEA wants the contract renewed by April 2025 and extended to 2055.
-80% of Naperville’s electricity comes from burning coal.
-IMEA has not provided a detailed plan to meet the state’s 2045 deadline to shut down or reduce carbon dioxide emissions to zero.

There are three main reasons why we should not renew early:

First, renewing the contract early will lock Naperville into highly polluting energy sources. The IMEA predominantly relies on coal, which is being phased out because of its environmental impact and the shift toward cleaner, renewable energy. Committing to coal long term could prevent Naperville from taking advantage of future clean energy technologies, such as solar, wind, or battery storage solutions and grid management technologies. By delaying the renewal, Naperville would have the flexibility to explore other, more sustainable energy options.

Second, the cost of energy is changing. The cost of a megawatt hour from renewables, such as solar or wind, continues to get cheaper as compared to coal and other fossil fuels. An early contract renewal could lock Naperville into higher non-competitive rates, and miss out on more affordable renewables as IMEA has a vested interest in continuing to burn coal. Naperville can keep its options open for negotiating better terms later or entering into new agreements that reflect market pricing.

Third, there is a risk in renewing the IMEA contract without fully understanding the future regulatory landscape. State and federal policies increasingly favor renewable energy and impose stricter regulations on fossil fuels. Naperville could face unexpected costs and challenges related to compliance if it locks itself into an inflexible agreement. By waiting, Naperville can ensure that its energy decisions remain adaptable to regulatory changes.

Naperville should say a clear no to the early renewal request from IMEA. With the goal of transitioning to renewable energy while maintaining affordable and predictable energy costs, we can use the next several years to manage our own energy destiny. Let's bring in qualified experts to work with our city so we can transition to a clean energy future for Naperville before 2040.