Implementing Watershed Conservation Goals in an Agricultural Landscape through

Innovative Partnerships, Education, and Community Engagement in the Mackinaw

River Watershed, Illinois

Krista Kirkham

Authors

Jackie Kraft, McLean County SWCDKent Bohnhoff, McLean County NRCS

Dr. Maria Lemke, The Nature Conservancy

Ashley Maybanks, The Nature Conservancy

Rick Twait, City of Bloomington

Dr. Bill Perry, Illinois State University

Dr. Angelo Capparella, ParkLands Foundation

Dr. David Kovacic, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Mike Wallace, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Michael Brown, Ecology Action Center

Mike Garthaus, Friends of EverBloom

Terry Noto, Apphia T. LLC

McLean County

USGS gaging stations

Lake EvergreenLake Bloomington

Research and Demonstration Farm

Paired Watershed

Drinking Watershed Project

Mackinaw River Project SitesIllinois River

Mississippi River

p=0.047

p=0.004

p=0.007

Lemke et al., 2011 JEQ 40:1215-1228

Paired Watershed Project Results: 1999-2006

• Outreach works• No nutrient/suspended sediment reduction• No impact on hydrology or biota

Need to better retain runoff, especially from tile drainage

WETLANDS

Inlet

Cell 1 Cell 2 Cell 3Tile

3% 3% 3%

6%

9%

Monitornutrients& flow

Monitornutrients& flow

Monitornutrients& flow

Monitornutrients& flow

How well does a wetland perform?

What size of wetland is most effective at reducing nutrients in tile runoff?

9% 6% 3%

9% 6% 3% 3% 6% 9%

Nutrient ReductionsNO3-N: 18%-44%P04-P: 57%-68%

Application Methods Seed Type/Rate

Modified Hiboy

Cereal ryeAerial

No-till drill

Oats and Radish

Tillage Radish

Annual Ryegrass

Cover Crops

N

Demonstrate many conservation practices on a working farm

Floodplain wetland construction

USGS gaging stations

Lake EvergreenLake Bloomington

Research and Demonstration Farm

Paired Watershed

Drinking Watershed Project

Mackinaw River Project SitesIllinois River

Mississippi River

Six Mile Creek Watershed• 25,730 acres• Evergreen Lake

Money Creek Watershed• 43,100 acres• Lake Bloomington

Long-term goals:• To reduce nitrate loading to Lake

Bloomington, the source of water for 80,000 people and Bloomington and Normal, IL.

• To construct tile-drainage treatment wetlands and nutrient management practices at scale throughout the Lake Bloomington watershed.

• A proof of concept study that proposes a more sustainable approach to agricultural runoff than solely an engineering solution.

Conservation PracticesCRP CP-39: Farmable Wetlands Program50% cost-share40% practice

incentive payment $100/acre signing

incentive paymentCRP annual soil

rental payments + 20%

ADAPT NetworkNitrogen field trials

on corn (rate, timing, methods)

Corn stalk and soil testing, aerial imagery to determine nitrogen uptake

Nitrogen management plan

ParkLands Foundation

• Land Trust founded in 1967 by Loring Merwin• Mission Statement: To preserve, protect and

ecologically restore historic natural lands in the middle and upper Mackinaw Valley watershed

• Own ~1,500 acres of woodland, prairie, and riparian habitat in McLean and Woodford counties, Illinois.

Preservation and restoration of native habitats in central

Illinois

Outreach and volunteer opportunities

Friends of EverBloom• Not-for profit organization founded in

January 2013

• Mission Statement: to positively contribute to the overall health and function of Lake Bloomington and Evergreen Lake and their associated watersheds while using enhancement, restoration and protection of fish and aquatic species, sustainability plans for these ecosystems and associated watersheds, and enhanced public awareness of conservation issues surrounding these lakes as guiding principles.

Restoration Activities

Shoreline Protection

Lake habitat restoration

Community Projects

Ecology Action Center• Created in 1971 under the name “Operation Recycle” in

Normal, IL• 1971-1982: Ongoing recycling drives are held in

Bloomington-Normal• 1982: Mid-Central Illinois Operation Recycle becomes a

full-time organization• 1995: Ecology Action Center opens as an educational

center• 2004: Operation Recycle officially changes its name to

the Ecology Action Center

Urban Watershed Protection Efforts

• Yard Smart: program promoting sustainable landscaping practices less likely to contribute to storm water runoff pollution. This includes promotion of YardSmart certification, specific strategies through resource handouts, and the popular annual YardSmart garden walk

• Ongoing build-it-yourself Rain Barrel workshops and affordable ready-to use rain barrels as a means to reduce storm water runoff (over 700 rain barrels in the community)

• Installation of demonstration rain gardens as a tool to absorb run off and filter out pollutants

• Storm drain inlet stenciling and door to door distribution of information on storm water runoff pollution and strategies to help reduce it

• Classroom presentations on clean water to every third grade classroom in Bloomington and Normal and several in the county as well

• Development of the mCLEANwater.org watershed clearinghouse website • Outreach to the community via special events, public talks & presentations, email

newsletters, and social media.• Creek and trail clean ups

It takes more than a village…

Watershed Conservation

Urban

Main stem and Reservoirs

Rural

Collaborators, Partners and Funding Sources:Natural Resources and Conservation Service (NRCS)Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD)University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana (UIUC)Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)/Walton Family FoundationCity of Bloomington, IllinoisWorld Wildlife FoundationPrivate landowners and producersIllinois State University (ISU)MonsantoDuPont -PioneerLumpkin Family FoundationIllinois State Water Survey (ISWS)AGREM LLC Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)Southern Illinois University (SIU)Ducks Unlimited (DU)Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS)Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS)Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA)United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)Kellogg Foundation; Mackinaw River Partnership

Questions?