Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0282

HR0282 LRB104 13249 LAW 25437 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Original Kaskaskia Area Wilderness (OKAW), Inc. on the occasion of its 30th anniversary; and

WHEREAS, OKAW, a landowners' association in southwest Illinois, was formed as a forum for community discussion of landowner issues and a grass-roots planning commission in 1995, becoming a 501(c)(3) private land trust in partnership with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' Ecosystems Program of Conservation 2000 (IDNR C2000), which provides financial incentives for landowners to sign conservation easements with the association; and

WHEREAS, OKAW's purpose is to develop, enhance, and protect the natural resources in the Mid-Kaskaskia River watershed, an important ecosystem whose natural resources include five of the State's largest forest tracts, upland post oak flatwoods, agricultural lands, and coal and oil deposits, due to the area exhibiting apparent herbicide vapor-drift damage and severe bank erosion, among other issues, in recent years; and

WHEREAS, The Mid-Kaskaskia River watershed's unchannelized floodplain section shelters the breeding grounds and natural habitats of many species, including neotropical warblers, a number of duck species, wild turkey, pileated woodpeckers, otters, bobcats, coyotes, beavers, and deer; it is also home to high-value white oak and walnut timber and showy native wildflowers and is part of an area known for its production of wheat, soybean, corn, pumpkin, and orchard products; and

WHEREAS, OKAW has grown to approximately 100 members and, over the years, has offered conservation easements, nest-box workshops, wood walks, photography contests, classroom conservation videos, a reforestation program, vernal pool plans, a Kaskaskia River Corridor Stewardship Plan, and a yearly newsletter; the association has also worked with a number of entities, including the Kaskaskia Watershed Association and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and

WHEREAS, OKAW is currently led by President Doane Borrenpohl, who continues to work with the association's first president, Larry Hasheider; the association has received additional support from Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) coordinator Ed Weilbacher, area landowner Glen Schuetz, IDNR wildlife biologist Martin Kemper, and State Representative Charlie Meier; and

WHEREAS, OKAW members will celebrate its 30th anniversary at Okawville Community Club on April 29, 2025; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Original Kaskaskia Area Wilderness (OKAW), Inc. on its 30th anniversary, and we acknowledge its members' efforts in the natural resource conservation of the Kaskaskia River watershed; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to OKAW, Inc. as an expression of our esteem and respect.