22 / OutdoorIllinois June 2008
KeepYour Eye on Every
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Soar through current information on hunting, camping and fishing and
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Make check or money order payable to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and mail to
the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, P.O. Box 19225, Dept. NL, Springfield, IL 62794-9225;
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Park—accessible fishing pier,
shoreline stability, paths, fitness
stations, shelter, playground
equipment
Iroquois County
Cissna Park, Pavilion Park—
renovate pavilion, new sports
equipment, sand volleyball
court, horseshoe pits, play
equipment, restroom, driveway
Kane County
Aurora, Phillips Park—splash
pad, dog park, skate park, fenc-ing,
lighted ball fields, volleyball
court, trail, fitness stations, float-ing
boat docks, shoreline
restoration
Batavia PD, Prairie/Lathem
Park—basketball courts, tennis
courts, ball fields, playground,
wet-prairie demonstration area
Dundee Township, Jelkes
Creek Bird Sanctuary—wetland
and prairie restoration, commu-nity
bike path connection, fish-ing
ledges, interpretive trails,
shelter, restrooms
Hampshire Township PD,
Dorothy J. Schmidt Memorial
Park—basketball court, shelters,
disc golf, playground, path, fit-ness
stations, game area
Kane County FPD, Muirhead
Springs Forest Preserve—eques-trian
trails, hiking trails, inter-pretive
signs, shelters,
restroom, wetland and prairie
restoration
South Elgin, Thornwood
Park—soccer field, skate park,
trails, fitness stations, native
prairie landscaping
cise stations, tennis courts,
multi-purpose field, landscaping
Lake County
Buffalo Grove PD, Willow
Stream Pool—rebuild pool shell
Grayslake PD, Alleghany
Community Park—ball fields,
shelter, basketball courts,
lacrosse fields, path
Lake Forest, new community
park—ball fields, soccer/grid
fields, path, pavilion, parking
beach, public archery range, shel-ter,
fishing pier, trail access to
regional bike trail system
Downers Grove PD, Walnut
Avenue—soccer fields, shelter,
trail
Fox Valley PD, Spring Lake
Community Park—playground,
shelter, canoe launch, fishing
pier, paths, ball fields, soccer
fields, basketball court, restrooms
Lisle, new park—pond, light-ed
trail, native landscaping,
interpretive signs, gazebo, play-ground,
spray park
Woodridge PD, Family Aquat-ic
Park—spray playground, fenc-ing,
shade structures, restrooms
Naperville PD, Winding
Creek Park—sports fields, play-ground,
stabilize bank, native
landscaping, shelter, restroom,
trail, interpretive signs
Fulton County
Banner—playground, shelter,
park amenities
Henry County
Kewanee PD, Windmont
Kendall County
Kendall County FPD, Jay
Woods Preserve—interpretive
trails, shelter, latrine, prairie and
woodland seeding, wetland
restoration
Kendall County FPD, Mill-brook
area—interpretive trail,
fishing stations, canoe launch,
shelter
Yorkville, Raintree Park—
playground, shelter, trail, exer-
Mermet Lake
management
DNR recently conducted
a revitalization project
at Mermet Lake (Massac
County) intended to control
curlyleaf pondweed. The
lake attracts thousands of
waterfowl annually and has
been one of the best fishing
destinations in southern Illi-nois.
Controlling curlyleaf
pondweed is of utmost
importance at this site to
prevent its spread into
other lakes and wetlands,
including the Cache River
and Cache River Wetlands.
The 2008 herbicide
treatment of Mermet Lake is
part of a multi-year
approach to restore the lake
to the healthy conditions
that existed prior to
curlyleaf pond weed infesta-tion.
Future treatment
efforts are contingent on
funding availability. Anyone
with questions regarding
the Mermet Lake curlyleaf
pondweed control project
can contact Chris Bickers,
DNR district fisheries biolo-gist,
at (618) 993-7094.
Illinois coal
On April 15 Illinois’ coal mine industry achieved a record
fifth consecutive year without a fatality, a milestone never
before achieved in Illinois and a testament to increased safety
measures and the diligence of mine workers in Illinois to follow
safety procedures.
Illinois coal miner safety is the top priority of the Department
of Natural Resources’ Office of Mines and Minerals. State law
requires a mine be inspected once a month; however, state mine
inspectors often visit mining operations with more frequency to
ensure compliance. Routine inspections of coal mines include
checking for compliance with state mining laws, proper ventila-tion,
hazardous conditions, and ensuring roof and rib control pro-cedures
are being followed and making sure miners are working
safely and properly.
Illinois has been able to produce approximately 160 million
tons of coal with an average workforce of 3,500 without a single
fatality.
Illinois has the most aggressive package of incentives in the
nation to spur clean coal-fueled power plant development and
provide other support for the Illinois coal industry. Under the
Coal Revival Program, established in 2003, $300 million in rev-enue
bonds provides major tax and financing incentives to large,
clean-coal fueled projects.
Illinois coal companies produce 33 million tons of coal annu-ally.
More than 50 percent of all electricity used in the United
States comes from coal, and Illinois’ supply is among the most
abundant in the world. Illinois has the largest reported bitumi-nous
coal resources of any state in the United States. In terms of
energy value, Illinois coal has more BTU’s than the oil reserves of
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait combined.
lot, native prairie grass area
Lake Zurich, Bristol Trails
Park—basketball court, play-ground,
picnic gazebo, trail, fit-ness
stations
Round Lake Area PD, Fairfield
Sports Park—softball field, play-ground,
trails, family game area,
shelters, interpretive stations
Macon County
Decatur PD, Scovill Park—
playground, shelter, interpretive
signs, paved parking
Madison County
Alton, Olin Park—play-ground,
basketball court, bleach-ers,
picnic shelters, path, seat-ing,
lighting
Godfrey, Glazebrook Park—
softball and baseball diamonds
Maryville, Drost Park—bas-ketball
court, horseshoe pits,
bocce courts, trails, bleachers,
lighting
Menard County
Oakford, Cardinal Park—
playground, shelter, basketball
court
McDonough County
Macomb PD, University Drive
Complex—softball fields, soccer
fields, trails, interpretive signs,
picnic areas, shelters, play-ground,
restrooms, landscaping
McHenry County
Crystal Lake PD, Sterne’s
Woods and Fen—picnic shelter,
restrooms, interpretive signs,
trail improvements, wet reten-tion
areas
Lake in the Hills, Sunset
Park—football field, softball
field, spray park, shelter, path,
interpretive signs
McHenry County Conserva-tion
District, Crystal Lake Road
area—trails, interpretive signs
McLean County
Bloomington, land near Eagle
View—shelter, playground, ball
fields, basketball court, soccer
field, trail
Bloomington, Gaelic Park—
soccer field, baseball field, bas-ketball
courts, playground, shel-ter,
fishing pier, bocce ball
courts, trail
Le Roy—swimming pool,
playground
Normal, Greenbriar Park—
baseball diamonds, playground,
basketball and volleyball courts,
pavilion, restrooms, nature area,
multi-sport play area, landscaping
Southeastern Illinois
Convention & Visitors Bureau
1707 E. Main St., Ste. 5, Olney, IL 62450
For tourism and lodging information call today
for your free Travel Guide at (877) 273-4554 or
check out our new Web site at:
www.southeastillinois.com
• 35 lodging facilities
• 19 campgrounds
• 8 state parks/wildlife areas
• large area lakes offering great fishing
• 27 (public and private) locations to hunt
• 4 of the 9 counties border the Wabash River
June 2008 OutdoorIllinois / 23
Randolph County
Red Bud, Lincoln Park—ten-nis
courts, trail, exercise sta-tions,
football field
St. Clair County
Engelmann Farm—acquire 61
acres for public recreation and
conservation area
Sangamon County
Springfield PD, Edwin Watts
Southwind Park—water splash
sprayground, picnic tables,
climbing boulders, shelters,
restrooms, interpretive sensory
gardens, wetland/prairie areas
Tazewell County
Minier—trail, base-ball/
softball/soccer fields, pavil-ion,
playground, horseshoe
courts, concession, restroom
Vermilion County
Danville, Carver Park—picnic
shelter, restroom, concession,
playground, lighting
Will County
Frankfort Square PD, Island
Prairie Park—nature center, inter-pretive
gardens, boardwalk, nest-ing
platforms, fishing pier, stone
shoreline platforms, shelter
Joliet PD, Nowell Park—trail,
pavilion, sand play area, basketball
courts, resurfacing tennis courts
Lockport Township PD,
Prairie Bluff Park—softball
fields, trails, picnic shelter, play-ground
area, interpretive signs
Plainfield Township PD,
Clow Stephens Community
Park—entrance, parking area,
restroom, playgrounds, trails,
dog park, shelter, landscaping,
prairie restoration, community
garden
Romeoville, Deer Crossing
Park—amphitheater, education
area, exercise stations, play-ground,
picnic shelter, native
landscaping
Shorewood, Town Center
Park—amphitheater, bocce
courts, horseshoe pits, spray
park, playground, trails, exer-cise
stations, shelter, prairie
restoration
Will County FPD, Rock Run
Rookery Preserve—parking,
shelter, latrine, drinking foun-tain,
trail, fishing areas, boat
access area
Winnebago County
Rockford PD, Linden Pointe
Park—playground, sports fields,
shelter, paths
Portraits of the Past
Oct. 30, 1961 was a productive day for catching walleye at
the Mississippi River Lock and Dam 18 at Gladstone for
OutdoorIllinois
reader Gray
Pierson and his
grandfather Lee
Dugan.
Do you have
photographic
memories of
yourself or your
ancestors enjoy-ing
Illinois’ great
outdoors? Dust
off those old
photo albums,
look for a his
toric photo of
people camping,
hiking, hunting or fishing and send it to OutdoorIllinois. We’ll
periodically publish visual memories of Illinois.
Include a brief description of the photograph, including the
location, date and names of people depicted, along with your
mailing address so the photograph can be returned. Questions?
Drop an e-mail to dnr.editor@illinois.gov or call (217) 785-4193.
