Nature's Edge - The State of the Chicago Region Report Card - July 2006

Chicago Wilderness is a consortium of approximately 180 communities and institutions which are concerned with the health of the natural ecological systems in our region. The region includes more than 225,000 acres of protected natural areas from the southeastern corner of Wisconsin, through northeastern Illinois and into northwestern Indiana. Recently, Chicago Wilderness released the results of a multiyear study as to the health of these natural ecological systems. As our region becomes more “built up”, many of these natural resources are lost. There are 3,160,000 total acres within the region. The 225,000 acres of protected natural space is less than 7% of that total space. Of those 225,000 acres of protected natural space, only 25,700 acres are high quality natural areas – less than seven-hundredth of one percent of the land and water area of Illinois!

Included in the “Report Card” evaluation are reviews of the terrestrial and aquatic communities, animal assemblages, plant species, ecological management, research and monitoring, development practices, how information about the natural systems is being communicated, and the progress of the biological diversity recovery plan. Overall, scores on the report card for the region were quite low. Recommendations for improvement included: increase the number of natural areas under active management and acquire or otherwise protect additional natural areas to balance sustainable growth with conservation of local biodiversity.

What does this mean for the Village of Lincolnshire?
The Village of Lincolnshire is active in protecting our regions biodiversity and ecological systems. Care has been taken to preserve and protect our native Illinois woodlands, prairie and wetlands along the Chicago River and Des Plaines River. Care is taken when approving development projects to protect the watershed and natural features throughout our Village by requiring sustainable development practices.

In areas that are already developed – such as our individual property – we can also be working to preserve and protect the health of our native ecosystems. Each of us can eliminate non-native invasive species on our property, i.e. buckthorn and garlic mustard, we can encourage and enhance the growth of native plants and trees, we can divert downspouts to rain gardens, avoid using chemicals or pollutants that could be washed from our property into our stormsewers and rivers – to name only a few.

As individuals and as a collective community, we can make a difference in the health of the Chicago region.

For more information on the Chicago Wilderness report, “The State of Our Chicago Wilderness, A Report Card on the Health of the Region’s Ecosystems,” please go to www.chicagowilderness.org.