Full Text of HR0978 95th General Assembly
HR0978 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 |
| Representatives are pleased to congratulate Dr. David L. | 4 |
| Thomas, Chief of the Illinois Natural History Survey, on the | 5 |
| occasion of his retirement on February 29, 2008; and
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| WHEREAS, The Illinois Natural History Survey is a division | 7 |
| of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and is the | 8 |
| largest and best known of the various State natural history | 9 |
| surveys; and | 10 |
| WHEREAS, Dr. Thomas served as the Director of the Illinois | 11 |
| Waste Management and Research Center from 1985 until 1997, when | 12 |
| he became Chief of the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS); | 13 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, As Chief of INHS, Dr. Thomas has focused on | 15 |
| several issues, including those related to invasive exotic | 16 |
| species; in 2000, he served as the non-federal co-chair for the | 17 |
| Research and Information Workgroup for the National Invasive | 18 |
| Species Advisory Committee, a council that coordinates federal | 19 |
| activities regarding invasive species; he has served on a | 20 |
| number of Illinois Department of Natural Resources Invasive | 21 |
| Species committees and workgroups; he currently serves as a | 22 |
| member of the Illinois Invasive Plant Species Board; and
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| WHEREAS, Dr. Thomas has been involved with the University | 2 |
| of Illinois in many capacities; he currently represents the | 3 |
| INHS as a member of the Arboretum Board and as a member of the | 4 |
| Environmental Council; he is a member of the National Great | 5 |
| Rivers Research and Education Center, a collaborative effort | 6 |
| between the University of Illinois College of ACES, Lewis and | 7 |
| Clark Community College, and INHS which promotes research, | 8 |
| education, and further understanding of large river issues; the | 9 |
| Center is currently in the process of developing a | 10 |
| state-of-the-art field station in Alton which will greatly | 11 |
| further their goals; and
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| WHEREAS, Dr. Thomas has served on various committees | 13 |
| addressing contaminant issues at Midewin National Tallgrass | 14 |
| Prairie (the former Joliet Arsenal) and the Calumet area; his | 15 |
| expertise was critical in developing plans that allow these | 16 |
| areas to become valuable for wildlife conservation and human | 17 |
| recreation; and
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| WHEREAS, Dr. Thomas served as the chair of the American | 19 |
| Fisheries Society committee that addressed Farm Bill 2002; the | 20 |
| committee's work concluded with a "Pending Legislation | 21 |
| Opinion" article in the November 2001 issue of Fisheries | 22 |
| magazine; he recently became a board member for the Chicago | 23 |
| Wilderness Trust, an alliance of public and private |
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| organizations working together to preserve and manage the | 2 |
| natural ecosystems of the Chicago region; he also served | 3 |
| previously as an active member of the CW Steering Committee; | 4 |
| and | 5 |
| WHEREAS, Dr. Thomas has devoted much of his time to the | 6 |
| restoration of the Illinois River; he served on the Science | 7 |
| Advisory Committee to the Illinois River Coordinating Council | 8 |
| and The Nature Conservancy Science Advisory Committee for the | 9 |
| restoration of Emiquon, one of the largest floodplain | 10 |
| restoration projects in the U.S.; and | 11 |
| WHEREAS, In addition to his many activities in the State of | 12 |
| Illinois, Dr. Thomas has also worked nationally and | 13 |
| internationally in the area of pollution prevention and | 14 |
| sustainable development; he served on the first Governing Board | 15 |
| for the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable from 1990 to | 16 |
| 1994 and as Chair of the Board of Directors from October 1993 | 17 |
| until September 1994; he also represented the Roundtable on | 18 |
| EPA's American Institute of Pollution Prevention (AIPP) from | 19 |
| 1992 through 1996; and | 20 |
| WHEREAS, Following his retirement, Dr. Thomas plans to | 21 |
| remain active in various environmental causes, including the | 22 |
| fundraising efforts for INHS's upcoming 150th Anniversary | 23 |
| Celebration and various research projects; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 2 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 3 |
| congratulate Dr. David L. Thomas on the occasion of his | 4 |
| retirement and wish him many happy and healthy retirement | 5 |
| years; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 |
| presented to Dr. David L. Thomas as a symbol of our esteem and | 8 |
| respect.
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