70th SWCS International Annual Conference July 26-29, 2015 Greensboro, NC

1. Implementing Watershed Conservation
Goals in an Agricultural Landscape through
Innovative Partnerships, Education, and
Community Engagement in the Mackinaw
River Watershed, Illinois
Krista Kirkham

2. Authors
Jackie Kraft, McLean County SWCD
Kent 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

3. McLean County

5. USGS gaging stations
Lake Evergreen
Lake Bloomington
Research and
Demonstration Farm
Paired Watershed
Drinking Watershed
Project
Mackinaw River Project Sites
Illinois River
Mississippi River

6. p=0.047
p=0.004
p=0.007
Lemke et al., 2011 JEQ 40:1215-1228

7. 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

8. Inlet
Cell 1 Cell 2 Cell 3
Tile
3% 3% 3%
6%
9%
Monitor
nutrients
& flow
Monitor
nutrients
& flow
Monitor
nutrients
& flow
Monitor
nutrients
& flow
How well does a wetland perform?
What size of wetland is most effective at reducing nutrients in tile runoff?
3% 6% 9%
Nutrient Reductions
NO3-N: 18%-44%
P04-P: 57%-68%

9. Application Methods Seed Type/Rate
Modified
Hiboy
Cereal rye
Aerial
No-till drill
Oats and
Radish
Tillage
Radish
Annual
Ryegrass
Cover Crops

10. N
Demonstrate many conservation practices on a working farm
Floodplain wetland construction

11. USGS gaging stations
Lake Evergreen
Lake Bloomington
Research and
Demonstration Farm
Paired Watershed
Drinking Watershed
Project
Mackinaw River Project Sites
Illinois River
Mississippi River
Six Mile Creek Watershed
• 25,730 acres
• Evergreen Lake
Money Creek Watershed
• 43,100 acres
• Lake Bloomington

12. 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.

13. Conservation Practices
CRP CP-39: Farmable
Wetlands Program
 50% cost-share
 40% practice incentive
payment
 $100/acre signing
incentive payment
 CRP annual soil rental
payments + 20%
ADAPT Network
 Nitrogen field trials on
corn (rate, timing,
methods)
 Corn stalk and soil
testing, aerial imagery to
determine nitrogen
uptake
 Nitrogen management
plan

16. 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.

17. Preservation and restoration of
native habitats in central Illinois
Outreach and volunteer
opportunities

18. 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.

19. Restoration
Activities
Shoreline Protection
Lake habitat restoration

20. Community Projects

21. 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

22. 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

23. It takes more than a village…
Watershed
Conservation
Urban
Main
stem and
Reservoirs
Rural

24. 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 Foundation
City of Bloomington, Illinois
World Wildlife Foundation
Private landowners and producers
Illinois State University (ISU)
Monsanto
DuPont -Pioneer
Lumpkin Family Foundation
Illinois 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

25. Questions?