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REQUEST TO REGISTER BERGMAN SLOUGH AS AN ILLINOIS LAND AND WATER RESERVE
Department: Department of Resource Management
Summary: Requesting authority to submit Bergman Slough for Illinois Land and Water Reserve ("ILWR") registration through the Illinois Nature Preserve Commission (“INPC”).
This registration contributes to one of the key goals set forward in the Next Century Conservation Plan to dedicate 20,000 acres as Illinois Nature Preserves or ILWRs by 2025. Registration of a site as an ILWR provides a high level of protection for land in Illinois and is granted only to natural areas of important ecological quality.
The proposed Bergman Slough ILWR is an approximately 280-acre preserve adjacent to the Village of Palos Park in southwest Cook County. The site consists of a high-quality prairie restoration, wetlands, and a slough. Ecological management of the site began in the 1990s by volunteers and Forest Preserves of Cook County staff, and today the site remains under management by a vibrant volunteer community. The site features beautiful open prairie, a diverse set of wildflowers, and a number of rare grassland bird species.
The Forest Preserves of Cook County (the “Forest Preserves”) currently has twenty-five (25) dedicated Nature Preserves and four (4) registered Land and Water Reserves. The addition of Bergman Slough would establish the Forest Preserves’ 5th ILWR and bring the Forest Preserves’ total INPC protected lands (including all pending registrations) to approximately 10,320 acres.
It is respectfully requested that authority be granted to the Forest Preserves to submit Bergman Slough to the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission for review and formal registration as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve.
District(s): 17
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