6021 Development Drive, Suite 2, Charleston, IL 61920 info@colescountyswcd.org 217-345-3901 ext. 3

Embarras River Watershed Farmer Meeting Scheduled

Do you farm or own ground in the Embarras River Watershed? We want your input to identify resource concerns and solutions to aid with the update of the Embarras River Watershed Plan.

When: Thursday, January 23, 2020,
 from 8:00-10:00 AM (breakfast provided)

Where: Coles County Farm Bureau –
719 W Lincoln Avenue, Charleston, IL

What to expect: Group discussions of your water quality concerns, and the opportunity to identify locations for voluntary conservation practice implementation in the watershed.

The current Embarras River Watershed Management Plan, written in 2011, had a lifespan of 10 years and will become obsolete in 2021. With support and assistance from University of Illinois Extension, Illinois Farm Bureau, the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and several other SWCDs, county boards, municipalities, private landowners, and businesses, in July of 2019 the Coles County SWCD applied for a Section 319 grant through the Illinois EPA with the goal being to proactively update the plan so there will be a seamless transition between the current plan and the updated version in 2021.

The update will give focus and direction to best management practice implementation in the coming 10 years to address multiple resource concerns in the watershed, with particular emphasis placed on water quality due to the Embarras Watershed’s listing as a phosphorus priority watershed in the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy. Having a watershed plan in place also increases the chances of receiving funding from organizations like Illinois EPA, and others, for implementation of projects to reduce nonpoint source pollution in both rural and urban settings within the watershed.

Register online at extension.illinois.edu/cefj or call Jennifer Woodyard (University of Illinois Extension) at 217-347-7773; Lauren Spaniol (Coles County SWCD) at 217-345-3901 ext. 3; or Tonya Eich (Coles County Farm Bureau) at 217-354-3276.