Woods and Wetlands Group of the Sierra Club

See how your Legislators scored!

The future of our water, air, soil, and wildlife depends on decision-makers who use their power in the General Assembly to protect these critical resources for generations to come. Did your decision-maker vote to protect the environment? Find out in the and join us in celebrating each in the Illinois Senate and House.
https://ilenviro.org/2024-environmental-scorecard/

The Clean and Reliable Grid Act will update our state’s energy efficiency policies, saving families money and ensuring our grid can keep up with rising demand. Urge your legislators to ! ilcleanjobs.org/icjc-platform

Are you interested in solar energy for your home and learning how you can help reduce your carbon footprint? Join me and the Illinois Solar Education Association on August 15 at 6 PM to discover how we can work together to achieve our state's goal of 100% clean energy by 2050!

What you need to know about toxic algal blooms...

Cattail Chronicles Summer 2024 Cattail Chronicles Summer 2024 Lake County, Illinois sent this bulletin at 08/05/2024 10:30 AM CDT View as a Webpage Translate Volume 29, Issue 1 | Summer 2024 What is a HAB (Harmful Algal Bloom)? The Lake County Health Department—Ecological Services responds to complaints of potential blue-green ...

Concerned about EtO emissions in Lake County? Here's your chance to comment on a government study:

Join Our Community Discussion on Ethylene Oxide (EtO) Exposure! 🙋 We’re excited to invite you to an open comment writing session regarding a recent Ethylene Oxide (EtO) exposure report done in Lake County. This is a crucial opportunity for our community to come together, share our thoughts, and ensure our voices are heard.

Come see at the Lake County Fair!

First day of the Lake County fair and I ran into my former colleagues from Sierra Club IL and Woods and Wetlands Group of the Sierra Club! They are continuing to advocate for a nature corridor in the former Route 53 extension project. See you all at the fair going on now through Sunday at the fairgrounds!

Finding joy in July in your Lake County Forest Preserves!

July in Your Lake County Forest Preserves 🎶

Had a wonderful time at the Forest Preserve's Cicada Fest yesterday at the Ryerson Conservation Area. A bountiful array of bugs, buzzing and exhibits. The Dunn Museum's Cicada exhibit is open until August 4th. Thanks to all of our volunteers, excellent staff and valued partners at Brushwood, which is also featuring a cicada-themed art show.

The latest beautiful edition of the Forest Preserve's Horizons magazine is available for free online:

Horizons | Lake County Forest Preserves Scheduled network maintenance will take place Monday, June 3 from 5 pm–12 am. Temporary impact may affect your interactive trail maps, phone system and...

In collaboration with The Illinois Environmental Council , we will be doing a presentation on the Inflation Reduction Act next Thursday, May 30th. Learn about this once in a generation legislation and the program benefits available to your municipality, business, or nonprofit! Register here: https://act.ilenviro.org/a/ira-federal-funding-lake-county

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En colaboración con IEC, haremos una presentación sobre la Ley de Reducción de la Inflación el próximo jueves 30 de mayo. ¡Conozca esta legislación única y los beneficios del programa disponibles para su municipio, empresa u organización sin fines de lucro! Registro aquí: https://act.ilenviro.org/a/ira-federal-funding-lake-county

County Board Passes Groundbreaking Bird-Friendly Building Design Policy

🐦 Lake County Board Passes Groundbreaking Bird-Friendly Building Design Policy 🐦 Lake County Board Passes Groundbreaking Bird-Friendly Building Design Policy Lake County, Illinois sent this bulletin at 05/14/2024 11:49 AM CDT translate view as a webpage May 14, 2024 🐦 County Board Passes Groundbreaking Bird-Friendly Building Design Policy The Lake County Board approved a...

What Lake County is doing on sustainability: Net Zero goals and more...

Lake County Sustainability Initiatives Take Root in 2024 Lake County Sustainability Initiatives Take Root in 2024 Lake County, Illinois sent this bulletin at 05/10/2024 10:49 AM CDT translate view as a webpage Lake County Sustainability Initiatives Take Root in 2024 While Earth Month has ended and Migratory Bird Day is this Saturday, Lake County is lookin...

Honor the mothers in your life with native plants from the Forest Preserve Native Plant Sale this weekend at Independence Grove. Thanks, Moms, for all your love and support!

Native Plant Sale | Lake County Forest Preserves Due to the success of the Native Plant Sale on Saturday, May 11 we are sold out of inventory. There will be no in-person sale on Sunday, May 12. You can...

Compost giveaway at the Grayslake U of I Extension office. Good while supplies last. Bring your own buckets. Thanks to SWALCO and Master Gardeners for sponsoring!

Spring Compost Give Away/ Give Back 100 S Highway 45 Grayslake, IL 60030

Looking for some great plants for your garden? The Prairie Crossing Farm is having its annual plant sale and farm festival this weekend. Come support the enterprising local high schoolers who grew the plants:

Spring Plant Sale and Farm Festival Shop for organic vegetables, herbs and flowers and native plants while enjoying a day at the farm

"New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations give the nation’s coal plants an ultimatum: Adapt or shut down.
“With the 2015 rules, there was a circle of ponds and landfills that were subject to regulation. That circle of ponds, landfills, and other dump sites just got bigger," says Megan Wachspress, staff attorney with Sierra Club."
https://www.wbez.org/stories/coal-ash-cleanup-in-illinois-happening-too-slow/057c0ce4-3802-41d8-b4d3-676295d681c5?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR1SkvhFZDnx4RGO5qkdq6PNqfyySe2uX3Z8KT4Fm35f4h_lw4pIMGZPdtI_aem_AWpkH-fjXjKiAbAb87I_qSkFIxn-W4jlEgY9zzVGI_Dtv1FMAYtB6d0qGaxxUPcSuHofzpg0f-9PqDqe7UQjRYCD

New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations give the nation’s coal plants an ultimatum: Adapt or shut down.

“With the 2015 rules, there was a circle of ponds and landfills that were subject to regulation. That circle of ponds, landfills, and other dump sites just got bigger," says Megan Wachspress, staff attorney with Sierra Club.
https://www.wbez.org/stories/coal-ash-cleanup-in-illinois-happening-too-slow/057c0ce4-3802-41d8-b4d3-676295d681c5

"ICYMI, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency closed a loophole that historically has let fossil fuel operators skirt responsibility for clean-up.
"I want to see a clean energy future for Waukegan and all communities that have borne the brunt of coal ash pollution for decades," said Dulce Ortiz of Clean Power Lake County."

New EPA rules close a ‘huge loophole’ on coal ash, forcing wide-scale cleanup, advocates say | Energy News Network A pair of new regulations finalized Thursday are expected to require cleanup of coal ash pollution at all known locations where the toxic byproduct has been dumped.

The perfect Mother's Day gift! 🌷
www.TownCountryGardenClub.com/Gardenwalk
We will send a special gift certificate & milkweed seeds to attract butterflies.

🎉HUGE NEWS: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized four standards today that will slash air, water, and carbon pollution from power plants.

“The publicly-owned Prairie State, Dallman, and Marion coal plants are disproportionately responsible for power sector pollution, and these federal rules offer critical safeguards to curb that pollution,” said Christine Nannicelli. “Municipal utilities and rural electric cooperatives that secured an exception to CEJA’s rules are on notice that they cannot continue to operate these plants indefinitely and have to plan for a coal-free future in the next decade.”

Read our statement: https://www.sierraclub.org/illinois/blog/2024/04/us-epa-finalizes-package-standards-slash-power-plant-pollution

We'll be celebrating cicadas at our new exhibit at the Forest Preserve's Dunn Museum. Catch the buzz...

Exhibitions | Lake County Forest Preserves View the exhibitions currently at the Dunn Museum in Libertyville, Illinois

In your Lake County Forest Preserves, every day is Earth Day, so celebrate and respect your planet. We have a host of activities planned for the entire family.

Upcoming Events - Education | Lake County Forest Preserves The site navigation utilizes arrow, enter, escape, and space bar key commands. Left and right arrows move across top level links and expand / close menus in sub levels. Up and Down arrows will open main level menus and toggle through sub tier links. Enter and space open menus and escape closes them....

IDOT (our state highway dept.) just announced a public meeting to focus on the Rt. 120 corridor. Details are scant, but you can comment at the meeting or online. This is from their website:

"A Public Information Meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 23, 2024 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Blue Ribbon Room at the Lake County Fairgrounds, 1060 East Peterson Road, Grayslake, IL 60030. The purpose of the meeting is to:
To introduce the project
To discuss the purpose and need for the project
To obtain public input
Interested persons may attend anytime between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. Exhibits will be on display and an audio-visual presentation will be shown continuously during the meeting. Project team members will be present to discuss the project and answer questions. Written comments can be submitted at the meeting, mailed after the meeting, or submitted to the project website. Comments received by May 24th, 2024, will become part of the official public information meeting record."

IDOT typically takes years to plan a project, usually after extensive review and public comment.

Here's their landing page: https://www.il120study.com/meeting/

You can see some slides and timeline and comment through an email or at the meeting. This is our time to comment and tell IDOT what we'd like to see in this corridor.

Public Information Meeting #1 A Public Information Meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 23, 2024 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Blue Ribbon Room at the Lake County Fairgrounds, 1060 East Peterson Road, Grayslake, IL 60030. The purpose of the meeting is to:

Make every day Earth Day. The Village of Round Lake, which had its Earth Week event yesterday, was giving away red oaks. Thanks to Mayor Kraly, his great village staff and fire dept. ; Forest Preserve volunteers; the Lake County Extension Master Gardeners and SWALCO, our county solid waste agency. There are plenty of recycling events coming up:

Lake County SWALCO, IL | Official Website Solid Waste Agency of Lake County1311 N Estes StreetGurnee, IL 60031Phone: 847-377-4950Email SWALCO Hours: Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

State spends $73 million to protect Illinois’ only undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline Breakwater structures at Illinois Beach State Park aim to mitigate erosion A $73 million state-funded project in Lake County aims to stabilize the last undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline in Illi...

Shedd CEO: Wetlands are Illinois’ unsung heroes in the fight against climate change Wetlands in Illinois have a not-so-secret superpower. They are all natural buffers to the impacts of climate change.