Illinois could receive $24.5 million in wildlife protection funding

[August 29, 2022]  By Zeta Cross | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) – Congress is close to passing the biggest wildlife protection bill in 50 years.

The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (RAWA) passed the U.S. House in June. Bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate is expected to lead to passage. RAWA has 35 co-sponsors in the Senate.

The Senate bill proposes using federal environmental penalties to pay for the protection measures.

“Wildlife in Illinois is in crisis,” Ryan Grosso, water resources associate for the Prairie River Network, told The Center Square. “This bold legislation will tackle the problem at scale, without new taxes or regulations.”

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is expected to receive more than $24 million to protect Illinois wildlife habitat and fund projects such as those that are designated in the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan.

Nationwide, more than 12,000 wildlife species and plants have been identified as threatened.

“The diversity of habitat and wildlife is one of Illinois’ greatest attributes,” IDNR says on its website.

“It is our environmental legacy,” Grosso said. “We want future generations to hear the song of the meadowlark and see monarch butterflies in their backyards.”

Funding will be used to make sure that Illinois rivers and streams are running clean and healthy, among other things.

“Making sure that pollution is not entering a stream, so that the water itself is healthy,” Grosso said.

Habitats for fish, mussels and different species will be recovered, developed and enhanced.

The chorus frog, the Blanding’s turtle, the lake sturgeon and the rusty patched bumble bee are some of the 419 animals that are listed as endangered by IDNR.

Manmade structures and human intervention have disconnected Illinois rivers and streams, keeping them from meeting their historic flood plains.

“We can reconnect these rivers with their wetlands, creating new, healthy habitat that we haven’t been able to see before,” Grosso said.

Sensitive amphibians depend on wetlands for their survival, according to Grosso.

“I like to picture them as the perfect indicator as to whether an environment is healthy,” he said. "When these creatures are thriving, it means that the area is healthy.”

Being proactive about protecting wildlife before it is designated as threatened or endangered is sensible and cost-effective.

“It is the view of a lot of folks that making these significant investments now, before species reach a point of no return, is better not only for the species itself, but for the taxpayers,” Grosso said.