Real Impact stories spotlight the real difference people, programs and partnerships – across the system – make on the state’s economic, social and cultural well-being. For more, meet maker Gabe Tavas.
By Laura Mabry
We often hear about the challenges – and strong emotions – that bubble up when human land-use needs conflict with preserving natural environments. What we don’t always witness are the successes when industry, government and conservationists partner for the kind of harmony that benefits everyone.
Bluff Spring Fen Nature Preserve in Elgin, an hour northwest of Chicago, benefits from a host of entities working together to meld protecting wetlands and other natural habitats with the needs of people living and working nearby.
“Bluff Spring Fen is an important piece of history that’s still living now,” said Randy Locke (far right in group photo below), a principal research scientist at Prairie Research Institute (PRI). “There’s been long-term commitment and collaboration among landowners, natural resource agencies, mining companies, land developers, preservationists, municipalities and others to maintain the delicate balance between the health of the site and surrounding land uses that could impact the preserve’s integrity.”
Part of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), PRI is yet another University of Illinois System entity that conducts transformative science that benefits the people, economy and environment of Illinois, the nation and the world.
Each spring, the system requests funding from the state to continue essential academic, research, economic development and outreach work that positively impacts communities across the state. This budget cycle is key for PRI, which receives essentially the same annual contribution from the state as it did when it became part of the U of I System in 2009. The system is asking the state for a 12 percent boost for PRI in the next budget cycle, increasing the $14.8 million budget to about $16.5 million.
Student perspective
Funding doesn’t just help broadly in the state. It helps intern – and now PRI student employee – Lily Hearn learn, explore and improve the world around her.
The UIUC junior will never forget the first time she saw Bluff Spring Fen Nature Preserve.
“The range of prairie, woodlands, ponds and wetlands was just so beautiful to me,” said Hearn (far left in group photo). “Getting to learn about the ecology and restoration efforts directly connected our mission with the importance of monitoring.”
Field trips to Kennedy Space Center near where Hearn grew up sparked her early interest in science and nature. That led her to PRI, where she learned that fens are peat-forming wetlands that rely on certain groundwater conditions.
“At Bluff Spring Fen, PRI collects groundwater to monitor its chemical and physical properties,” Hearn said. “The goal is protecting groundwater to provide the water supply for the rare and native species that depend on its uninterrupted and unaltered state.”
Protecting the preserve benefits people, too. Green spaces like Bluff Spring Fen help reduce flooding impacts and provide high-quality natural environments for outdoor activities.
Hearn’s research mentor, Locke came to UIUC in 1994 to investigate how vulnerable Illinois nature preserves are to groundwater contamination.
“Bluff Spring Fen is highly vulnerable to contamination, for example from roadway runoff including salt and oil. The preserve is also highly managed to mitigate negative impacts as much as possible,” Locke said, adding PRI’s work there for 25 years has provided essential data to keep water and wildlife in good shape.
“Responsible stewardship and strong partnerships have helped guide local development and water management to protect this wonderful place. I hope successes at Bluff Spring Fen can inspire stewardship efforts elsewhere.”
Economic value
PRI Executive Director Praveen Kumar wants the benefit of state funding to be clear.
“Scientists and professional staff at PRI provide foundations for unbiased decision making, and state agencies and numerous corporations rely heavily on PRI to support their activities,” Kumar said. “Without this foundation, sustained economic growth, natural resources stewardship, social justice considerations and human health concerns would suffer significantly.”
Research from the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at UIUC solidifies PRI’s value in terms of dollars and cents.
The research shows the direct economic impact of PRI on the Illinois economy is valued at $667 million for 2018-22, providing more than 5,300 full-time jobs in the state. That means each dollar PRI spends returns $5.06 in economic value to Illinois.
With much of the research at the system’s universities focused on mitigating climate change, it’s no surprise PRI plays a key role.
PRI comprises five state scientific surveys: the Illinois Natural History Survey, Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Illinois State Geological Survey, Illinois State Water Survey and Illinois Sustainable Technology Center. PRI also oversees the Illinois Water Resources Center.
Collectively, the surveys have served the state for more than 165 years.
For future generations
Those who think groundwater preservation and similar efforts are nice but not necessary should think again.
“Illinois had the foresight to identify and protect the groundwater resources many of our natural areas depend upon,” Illinois Nature Preserves Commission Executive Director Todd Strole said. “Whether it is on a regional or a local scale, efforts to avoid, minimize and mitigate impacts to groundwater resources start with PRI data.”
What Locke and other PRI researchers learn through their field and lab studies benefits the entire Illinois Nature Preserves System, which has grown to more than 400 sites covering over 62,000 acres throughout the state. Locke and his colleagues have also identified over 150,000 acres that feed needed groundwater into 50 preserves in 14 counties. Those areas have been designated as Special Resource Groundwater Areas and help protect groundwater supplies for the preserves.
“The work PRI does provides us all a better understanding of natural systems, and by better understanding those special places, we are able to maintain and preserve their quality, and our quality of life, for generations to come,” he said.
Still, Locke would prefer to spend more time on research and less time seeking and securing funding to supplement what the state provides.
The budget bump the U of I System is requesting would help.
“We’ve had some lean years where funds were extremely limited. We had to drastically reduce our work and be very resourceful to keep even the basic parts of our monitoring and groundwater protection programs running,” he said.
“But being a researcher is not about making a lot of money. We do this work out of curiosity, responsibility and love. We do everything we can to leverage the funding we have, and we could do even more of the work that matters with additional state funding.”
Take action: To get involved in environmental and other advocacy opportunities, join Illinois Connection, a legislative network that promotes the U of I System’s positive impact on the state, nation and world to secure necessary resources and help ensure the system’s legacy and longevity.
The University of Illinois System’s impact through research and action to mitigate climate change are just parts of what makes us Altogether Extraordinary. To share a story idea, please message lmabry@uillinois.edu.
