The Huntley Farmside

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Volume 40 No. 32
Your hometown newspaper
Thursday Aug. 10,2000
© 2000 Press-Republican Newspapers
One of the many responsibilities of the McHenry County Defenders is to heighten environmental awareness in the minds of McHenry County youth, such as these children involved in Defender EartK Day 2000 artivities.
McHenry County .Defenders — fighting for the environment
by Suzanne Matthiessen
Staff writer
The phone rings at the office of the McHenry County Defenders, and the volunteer taking the call patiently tells the person on the other en^ of the line that no, they are not the Public Defenders office. The PD number is given, and after she hangs up she laughs and says, "We need to change our name!" Seems this happens all the time.
But fighting for McHenry County is what the Defenders do - it's just that their battle is not for individuals but for the preservation of the county's natural environment and resources. As their mission statement says, they are a "citizen organization ded¬ icated to building sound ecological relationships between people and the natural world that supports aU Ufe."
The Defenders evolved from two local environ¬ mental groups that began more than 30 years ago and combined to form the organization as it exists today - an extremely active nonprofit group that
lists 1000 members county wide (including six in Huntley and 31 in Marengo). It runs recycling cen¬ ters in Woodstock, Crystal Lake and McHenry; was instrumental in passing the Illinois Groundwater Protection Act; sponsors educational programs about native plants and natural landscaping; and serves as advocates of the reduction of urban sprawl, sustainable land use and energy and natural resource conservation.
The Defenders also houses an extensive environ¬ mental library and publishes a guide to help resi¬ dents dispose of items no longer needed (including household batteries, paint and oil) at locations with¬ in McHenry County, including their own recycling sites. The locations of the Illinois EPA Waste Reduction Units in Naperville and Rockford also are listed.
"We're everywhere," said board member Dwight Dalton. "But there's still not enough of us. There are three full-time paid staff and a bunch of volunteers. Our Membership Committee is going hog wild try- See Defenders Page 4
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Preserve • Proiect • Eifucate