Management Advice for Natural Area Restoration

Involving citizens is key if you want to be successful in your plans for restoring natural areas
BY MIKE TULLY, CLP

To promote natural areas restoration throughout the "Prairie State," the Illinois Association of Conservation and Forest Preserve Districts (IACFPD) has formulated some recommendations regarding site planning, natural resource management planning and techniques, and public participation.

Conservation and forest preserve districts across the state are encouraged to use these recommendations as a guideline when planning their restoration and management programs. These recommendations can also be used by local park districts and communities to develop their own programs.

Site Planning
Before starting a restoration program, agencies are advised to develop site specific plans that are reviewed and approved by their governing boards. These plans should show how areas managed for natural resources are balanced with public education and recreation facilities, and that environmental, fiscal and aesthetic impacts have been considered. A plan should include an analysis of existing and historic natural and cultural resources of the site. The goal should be to minimize damage to these resources, while maximizing the opportunities for restoring disturbed areas. When preparing these plans, agencies are encouraged to incorporate public and expert input from field research, resident and visitor surveys, advisory groups and public meetings or workshops.

Natural Resource Management Process
Agencies are encouraged to adopt a natural resource management process which incorporates four major steps:

1. Setting land acquisition goals that include preservation of natural lands;

2. Inventorying natural communities on agency lands to identify and prioritize preservation and restoration needs;

3. Using an approved plan to guide selection and implementation of field-tested management strategies accepted by ecological restoration professionals and researchers; and

4. Monitoring management progress and adjusting ongoing and future projects accordingly.

Management Techniques
Techniques used by agencies to manage their natural resources need to be based on scientifically accepted ecological principles, be approved for use by the governing body, and be guided by qualified professionals. Careful monitoring and review, by both agency staff and outside experts, are to be used to confirm effectiveness. The IACFPD recommends the following techniques to be used by agencies in their natural resource management programs.

1. Research the current and historic distribution and status of native species and communities.

2. Give first priority to preserving and restoring natural communities that are the most complete and least damaged to preserve a bank of native diversity.

3. Identify and protect endangered and threatened species and their habitat.

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4. Return natural forces, such as fire and hydrology.

5. Remove diseased or invasive plants that threaten the diversity of flora and fauna, and manage overpopulations of wildlife that degrade habitat for other plants and animals that naturally occur in the area.

6. Perpetuate biodiversity by reintroducing native plans and animals to their appropriate physical environment.

Public Participation
Getting public participation is vital to any natural resource management program. gram. A community that is well informed, and involved with a program, will go a long way to support it. The IACFPD encourages agencies to provide volunteering opportunities, education programs and public information dissemination to coincide with any restoration or management programs. More specifically, they recommend that agencies:

1. Provide volunteers and service groups with proper training and supervision by agency staff to guide them in completing projects that relate to an approved management plan;

2. Develop education and public information programs, publications, signs and other services and facilities to explain the agency's planning and management processes and the ecological basis for nature preservation and restoration efforts; and

3. Recognize the private ownership of adjoining lands and inform neighbors of future activities.

Local agencies are encouraged to contact their local conservation or forest preserve district to learn more about what sort of public awareness programs have been developed, and to see how they can tie in to their ongoing efforts.

Park districts or other agencies that are considering the development of a natural resource management program are encouraged to contact their local forest preserve or conservation district to learn more details about the local concerns regarding restoration and how they are being addressed on a county-wide or regional level.

Whether a program is a large, regional program or a small, single-site project, following the recommendations set out by the IACFPD should make success more easily attainable. 

MIKE TULLY, CLP
is the superintendent of maintenance operations for the Lake County Forest Preserves and a member of the IPRA Environmental Committee.

36 ¦ Illinois Parks and Recreation