National News Briefs

L&WCF Application Deadline Is July 1

The Illinois Department of Conservation, Division of Technical Services, has announced that applications for the Fy'84 grant cycle of the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (L&WCF) program will be accepted through July 1, 1983. Projects eligible for funding under the L&WCF program include the acquisition or development of land for public outdoor recreation. Sponsorship is open to any local unit of government, including but not limited, to park districts, conservation and forest preserve districts, cities and villages.

Robert E. Corrigan, Division of Technical Services' Chief, has indicated that the availability of grants for the upcoming FY'84 cycle is contingent upon whether Congress appropriates funds to the program through the budget of the Department of the Interior, National Park Service.

L&WCF applications must be received by the Division of Technical Services before July 1 in order to be eligible for consideration. Applications should be sent to: Illinois Department of Conservation, Division of Technical Services, Lincoln Tower Plaza, 524 S. Second Street, Springfield, Illinois 62706, Attention: Grants.

Further information on the grant program may be obtained by calling (217) 782-7481.

NATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS

PIK Program May Benefit Wildlife In The U.S.

Farmers throughout the nation have signed up to take 82.3 million acres of farmland out of production in 1983. Conservationists believe the idled land will provide environmental conditions that will aid wildlife.

David Klinedinst, wildlife assistant with the Illinois Department of Conservation's Division of Fish and Wildlife, said the 7.2 million acres to be diverted under the Payment in Kind (PIK) program in Illinois could provide vast amounts of food and cover for hard-pressed wildlife.

Klinedinst said, "There are certain crops that could be planted that make for ideal wildlife food and cover, such as pure or mixed stands of grain or corn."

There is some speculation also that lessened use of fertilizer and pesticides which would result from the PIK program might help clear up polluted streams and give fish a better habitat. The DOC recently reported that Illinois suffered 24 documented pollution-caused fish kills in 1982 and that 14 of those kills are believed to have been caused by agricultural related pollutants.

DOC Opposes Sale Of Shawnee Forest Land

David Kenney, director of the Illinois Department of Conservation, says he will oppose any attempts by the Federal Government to sell portions of the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois unless the lands have no natural resource or recreational value.

The U.S. Forest Service recently announced it has identified about 70,000 acres of Shawnee Forest for potential sale if Congress agrees with the Reagan administration's proposal to sell large amounts of federal lands to private interests.

The 70,000 acres represents about 27% of the 262,000-acre Shawnee Forest and about 12% of all publicly owned land in Illinois.

Shawnee National Forest itself makes up about 45% of the public land in the state. The rest — 333,000 acres — is owned or leased by the DOC.

Because congressional guidelines governing land sales probably would prohibit the sale of tracts with natural resource or recreational value, Kenney says he doubts whether much of the Shawnee acreage could be sold. However, legislation is expected to be introduced in the near future to allow either the study or sale of lands managed by the Forest Service.

Illinois Parks and Recreation 49 May/June 1983