By MICK ZAWISLAK, Daily Herald Staff Writer
Oct. 26, 2000 (Chicago Daily Herald)—A wide-ranging and ambitious plan to improve waterways in Illinois, including the Fox and Des Plaines rivers, received a $100 million pledge of support Thursday from federal lawmakers.
The U.S. House of Representatives in a 394-19 vote approved the Water Resources Development Act of 2000, a $6 billion initiative that includes $100 million in funding for the Illinois Rivers 2020 project.
That endeavor, led by Lt. Gov. Corinne Wood, has wedded a broad coalition of politicians, farmers, conservation groups and others who want to improve the water quality of the Illinois River basin, which covers 55 counties and many tributaries, including the Fox River.
Projects envisioned under the plan would protect farmland and open space; restore, enhance and preserve habitats for plants and wildlife; improve the waterways as transportation corridors; and curb storm water runoff and flooding. The initiative has been touted as moving beyond studies and into actual work.
"It's a major victory for Illinois," Wood said in a statement. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, a Yorkville Republican, and Rep. Ray LaHood, a Peoria Republican, led the push for the bill in Congress.
But there is still a way to go before any money is in the bank and specific projects are targeted. The U.S. Senate also has passed a version of the bill, which now goes to a conference committee, where a final version will be hashed out before going to the president for a signature.
That money, which has been designated to be received over three years, must be matched by the state in legislation that is expected to be introduced in the Illinois General Assembly next spring. Gov. George Ryan and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley support the plan.
"We're very excited. It's just a matter of time," said Wood spokesperson Shawnna Lee.
During months of traveling throughout the state and to Washington, Wood has pushed the idea that the Illinois River and its tributaries are important in the economic and environmental vitality of the state and Midwest. The Illinois River watershed affects 90 percent of the state's population and is the source of drinking water for more than 900,000.
"The Illinois River is a source of natural resources, water supply, recreation and tourism that we must protect and restore for future generations," Wood said in a release.
Various communities along the Fox River are considering or have riverfront plans in progress and the waterway has taken on a new and urgent significance as a resource and centerpiece. Runoff, which can cause floods and affect water quality and wildlife, is one of the big issues.
Continued growth has taken land that previously would have soaked up storm water and caused more flooding problems, according to Cindy Skrukrud, president of Friends of the Fox River.
"It's good news for the whole Illinois River basin," she said of the House bill. "Hopefully it will mean more money targeted toward storm water runoff in the Fox River watershed."
In New York, the nonprofit Environmental Defense group criticized the $6 billion initiative as being a "massive water pork bill" that undermines previous reforms.
The group cited subsidies for "risky beachfront development and the dredging of ports to uneconomical depths," as well as bigger flood control projects that would be "economically optimal," as being among the worst provisions of the bill.
© 2000 Chicago Daily Herald via Bell&Howell Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved.
