Conservative “Think Tank” Asking Gov. Quinn to Cast a Veto on the Illinois Urban Fishing Program

Last week the Illinois Department of Natural Resource’s popular Urban Fishing Program was among a list of ten actions that a conservative group calling itself the Illinois Policy Institute  is asking Gov. Quinn to veto.

Exposing children to fishing instills a love of the outdoors, which in turn stands to benefit the state both environmentally and economically.

The program, which has been in existence since 1985, was first introduced in Chicago to “teach individuals of all ages to fish, to enhance fishing opportunities in populated areas, and to give participants an understanding of and a greater appreciation for natural resources.” Since 1994, the Program has expanded to include free summer fishing clinics and school fishing programs across the state.

The budgeted cost for the 2011 Program is $365,400. This money comes from a dedicated Illinois Fish and Wildlife fund supported by fees on fishing and hunting licenses, and a share of a federal excise tax on sporting goods. So even if the Governor did veto this expenditure, the funds cannot be spent on anything but fish and wildlife programs.

The Illinois Policy Institute claim that “while the program may have good intentions, teaching fishing skills is not a core government service” misses the core of the Program’s benefit to state.

Exposing children to fishing instills a love of the outdoors, which in turn stands to benefit the state both environmentally and economically. Last summer nearly 20,000 youth participated in one of the 1,126 Urban Fishing Clinics held across the state. This outdoor experience, a first for many youth, increases the likelihood that they will become strong advocates for the environment as adults.

Reports also show that kids are more likely to fish when they become adults if they experience fishing before reaching high school age. This adds up to big economic benefits for the state when you consider that over $2 billion is annually spent in Illinois on hunting and fishing, enough to support 22,000 jobs and a $700 million annual payroll. (Source)

The environmental and economic benefits outlined above, along with the physical and mental health benefits put forth in Put Down the Electronic Gadgets and Get Outside This Weekend! add up to $365,400 well spent dollars.

Put Down the Electronic Gadgets and Get Outside This Weekend!

Playing outdoors is beneficial for a child's mind, body and spirit. All kids love to fish and as this young man demonstrates, never too young to cast a flyrod!

Father’s Day is this weekend and what better way to celebrate than to spend the day with the children in your life playing and exploring outdoors in nature.  The benefits to children of outdoor experiences are wide and varied. Besides the obvious health benefits of exercise, outdoor play stimulates the imagination, reduces stress and depression, and improves concentration and performance at school.  Children who spend time outdoors also gain an early appreciation and love of nature, increasing the likelihood that they will become strong advocates for the environment as adults.

So grab your kids and head to a local Forest Preserve, to one of our 139 State Parks and Recreation Areas , to one of the 9 U.S. Fish & Wildlife Refuges in Illinois, or down south to the Shawnee National Forest. From hiking, biking, swimming, fishing and canoeing to camping Wild Illinois is teaming with adventure for the whole family.

If your not sure what to do, not to worry! With the month of June proclaimed by Governor Pat Quinn, as Leave No Child Inside Month in Illinois, there is no shortage of cool, fun, family activities to choose from across the state this Father’s Day Weekend. Between the resources mentioned above,  the Illinois DNR Leave No Child Left Inside website and the Chicago Wilderness’ Kids Outside website you should have no problem finding an activity near you.

When you get back from your adventure, check back in here a post a comment about the fun you had. Also, you’ve go to check out  the Outdoors
Alliance for Kids (OAK), of which the Sierra Club is a founding member. OAK just launched a new Get Your Nature On Facebook application that will provide inspiration, encouragement and resources to young people who commit to getting physically active outdoors in nature this year.

Team TerMuirNators: Ready, Set, Bike!

It’s Bike to Work Week and Sierra Club is taking on the Active Transportation Alliance’s Bike Commuter Challenge.   Team TerMuirNators is already making a strong showing with more than 50% of the staff in the Chicago office biking to work and cumulatively the team has racked up over 130 miles of offsets.

Endorphins flowing after the morning bike commute!

Is it any coincidence our bike challengers were some of the first who made it into the office today?  We’re not too surprised; biking can be one of the fastest ways to get around town, especially in rush hour.   For many of us who usually take the train into work, biking provides a much-appreciated break from crowded commutes and takes care of cardio early in the morning, leaving time after work for concerts in the park.

Check back all this week for updates on Team TerMuirNators’ progress.  Are you participating in the Bike Commuter Challenge too?  Leave a comment, we’d love to hear your tales from the morning bike commute!  It not too late to join in on the fun, check out the Bike to Work Week website for tips and events.

The End of An Era – MWRD Votes To Disinfect Chicago River

Today’s vote by the Board of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (WRD) Board of Commissioners to reverse its longstanding opposition to disinfecting the effluent it discharges into the Chicago River system marks the end of an era.   Today’s vote means that soon Chicagoans can fully enjoy the Chicago River without worrying about getting sick.   It also will lead to the creation of thousands of jobs in making clean water upgrades at MWRD’s wastewater plants.

MWRD Commissionsers and Chicago River advocates celebrate

This marks the end of an era when we looked at the Chicago River system as large piece of plumbing whose primary purpose was getting our sewage out of town as fast as possible.   For decades, state rules and MWRD treated the river as a second-class waterway, foregoing modern pollution controls required on the rest of Illinois’ waters.  Today the District is taking an historic step toward giving us a cleaner urban waterway by acknowledging that people across the region are enjoying the river, and that many more would if they were confident it were safe.   Now, hopefully, we can all work together to plan and fund the work needed to accomplish that.

Gone also are the days when Chicago turned its back to the river, while it protected and celebrated our precious Lake Michigan and its shoreline.   From Daniel Burnham’s vision of a lakefront that is “forever open, clear and free,” to modern-day protests against threats to the Lake such as Asian Carp or pollution from BP’s Whiting refinery, Chicago’s leaders have long championed our Great Lake.   Now, however, the Chicago River, too, has powerful friends in high places.   The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, including Regional Administrator Susan Hedman, increased the pressure on MWRD to act, and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin lent his powerful voice at at critical time.  Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who happens to live and recreate along the river, have long fought for disinfection.   Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel supports disinfection, as Richard Daley did before him.   A powerful coalition of river users and clean water advocates worked for over a decade for this victory, including hundreds of Sierra Club volunteers who collected water samples to measure bacteria counts, attended dozens of public hearings, wrote comments to the Illinois Pollution Control Board, and went door to door in neighborhoods along the river seeking support.

Let’s hope this is also the end of an era for the MWRD, which, until today’s reversal, stood in stubborn opposition to the clear demands of the law and the community.    MWRD has been a pioneer in many areas of wastewater treatment, but during the decade-long struggle for disinfection the District’s leadership was more likely to circle the wagons against growing criticism than to open their decisionmaking process to community consensus.   That all started to change with Commissioner Debra Shore won election to the Board in 2006, and momentum further shifted with the election in 2008 of Commissioners Mariyana Spyropoulos and Michael Alvarez.   Together, these three spearheaded an effort to change the Distirct’s longstanding opposition to disinfection, and utlimately the Board voted 8-1 to do so.     Hopefully this new clean water consensus on the Board signals a new attitude at the District, and that MWRD will bring its substantial expertise and capacity to this and other issues ahead in the future of managing the Chicago River.

MWRD Delays Disinfection Decision

We are very disappointed that MWRD failed to take action today in support of disinfecting the Chicago River.   Despite the heroic efforts of Commissioners Alvarez, Shore, and Spyropoulos to clean up the river, the MWRD Board did not act on a proposal that they reverse their longstanding opposition to disinfection.

Enough already – Chicagoans have been waiting for years to enjoy the river without fear of getting sick.   MWRD has heard from city, state, and federal government, and most importantly, the public, that it wants a clean and healthy Chicago River as soon as possible.   More than 40 days of hearings have been held by the Illinois Pollution Control Board. What more do they need to hear?   MWRD’s stubbornness is a threat to our health, and a disservice to Cook County taxpayers.

Change will come to the MWRD, and Chicagoans will have a healthy river.  It’s a shame that it has taken this long – apparently MWRD will be the last agency in Chicago to do its part in addressing this important public health issue.