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Forest Preserve District of DuPage County by Brook McDonald and Sandy Rodman In July, the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County Board of Commissioners passed what is being labelled as one of the most aggressive natural areas management programs at the local level in the country. The program's goal is to restore the biological integrity of approximately 7,000 acres of the last remaining high quality natural areas in the county over the next 10 years. "This was a bold move by the Commission to show its long-term commitment to protect and restore our high quality natural resources," President John Case said. "With the rapid deterioration of our natural areas, it is imperative that we take action to restore them." According to Superintendent of Grounds and Resources, John Oldenburg, the program is unprecedented in its scope of evaluating, restoring and managing these prime natural areas. The overall cost of the program is about $11 million, which will come from a redirection of existing dollars available for forest preserve district projects. The funding provides additional support per year for natural resource management of more than $700,000 over that department's existing budget. Nearly $5 million of the total cost of the program will come from the construction and development fund. "Construction and development is not restricted to 'brick and mortar,'" Oldenburg said. " On the contrary, by preserving these high quality natural areas we are literally creating the foundation on which to build the future of our natural resources while meeting our statutory obligations as a forest preserve district." The 7,000 acres earmarked to benefit from the funding are comprised of 191 distinct management units. Each of these areas falls into either Class II or Class IV, an environmental classification for land that is of extremely high native quality. Now these areas are being more closely examined to determine priorities, and the actual implementation of the program is set to begin in the 1994-95 fiscal year which begins July 1, 1994. "We literally have 191 'patients' that we're examining and making a diagnosis on for 'treatment,'" Oldenburg said. He added that while the funding is imperative, the overall success of the plan lies in the long-term commitment of manpower, including volunteers. "The restoration process is complex, requiring a variety of management prescriptions that must be phased in through time to be effective," Oldenburg said. Briefly, the strategic plan for the natural areas management program is divided into the following: • Initial inventory, assessment, and classification process Since the 1830s, human use of land in DuPage County has expanded and intensified to the extent that very little of the natural landscape (only 3.5 percent) remains. Today, 90 percent of what remains of this landscape is found in DuPage forest preserves. Of
DuPage County's natural areas will benefit from the unprecedented Natural Areas Management Program, Targeting 7,900 acres of the District's most biologically-rich areas. the Forest Preserve District's more than 22,000 acres of land, about one-third is considered high quality, or containing ecological characteristics depicting the diversity and abundance of native plant species and animal habitats. These native plant and animal communities are the only remnants of the DuPage County's natural heritage. They are also the only habitats for most of the county's native plants and animals, providing a home for some 825 native plants. Ten of these plants are on the state of Illinois' endangered species list, seven others on the threatened list and one species on the watch list. A total of 193 plants are listed by the Forest Preserve District as being of special concern due to their rarity. These plants and plant communities provide habitat and necessary resources for the 225 vertebrate animals (44 fish, 8 amphibians, 15 reptiles, 119 breeding birds and 39 mammals) which are found on District lands. Three Illinois threatened and six endangered bird species have bred on District property since 1981. A total of 56 vertebrate species are considered to be uncommon and 66 are rare in northeastern Illinois. An additional 147 bird species utilized District lands during migrations in the spring and fall of each year. A total of 97 animals are listed by the Forest Preserve District as being of special concern. Non-native vegetation, such as European buckthorn and garlic mustard, increasingly is preventing native species of plants from thriving. These could be described as "weeds" or "aggressive" plants that quickly dominate an area, thus depleting the resources needed to sustain a healthy, natural environment. The continued existence of many of the county's plants and animals depends on proper habitat. These habitats must be managed in order to maintain and attain the proper ecological conditions necessary to foster stable populations of most species. The District's management efforts simply replicate the natural forces of nature; forces that now have been eliminated or reduced, such as fire. Presently, resource management efforts include clearing away brush to open the forest floor to light, burning to clear away unwanted growth and stimulate native plants, herbiciding when necessary to remove noxious species and replanting native species to return the ecosystem to its natural mix of plants species. In the report, State ofthe Natural Environment Within the Forest Preserves of DuPage County, released in March 1990, the overall condition of native ecosystems were found to be in a generally poor ecological state and that much needed to be done to rehabilitate them. The same report released in January 1993 states that little has changed during the last several years. In fact, some community types are now listed as being in worse condition due either to a better understanding of their ecology or because actual changes have occurred causing their decline. The passage of the natural areas management program is a step toward the rehabilitation and restoration of these natural areas, the last remaining native jewels of DuPage County. About the Author Brook McDonald is the Public Affairs Manager and Sandy Rodman is the Public Affairs Specialist for the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County.
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