The Valley of the Fox Group is one of 14 groups comprising the Illinois Chapter of the Sierra Club. Chartered in 1992, the group draws its membership from the Fox River Valley and the counties of Kane and Kendall. Also visit us at www.facebook.com/sierraclubvof.

Spring Ephemeral Hike at Starved Rock State Park

Saturday April 19, 9:00am to 3:00pm

The entire hike will be about 3-4 hours, split into two segments. First we'll hike 0.9 miles to Illinois Canyon, a trail that features White Trilliums and a sea of Bluebells that bloom in late April. We then return to our starting point. The second optional segment of the hike is about 5 miles round trip up and down moderate hills. We'll walk to Council Overhang in Ottawa Canyon and continue along the river to LaSalle Canyon to see its locally famous waterfalls. We'll then double back to the Illinois Canyon parking lot.

Led by Janie Bristow and co-leader Ray Wronkiewicz, this outing is suitable for school-aged children (or parents who want to carry their children) and persons who can walk flat unpaved trails. Participants may sign out at the end of the Illinois Canyon segment if you don’t want to walk the additional 5 mile trip to LaSalle Canyon and back.

Starved Rock State Park is home to a rich variety of common and rare spring ephemeral wildflowers. This hike is one of the most beautiful and unique that the park has to offer. We’re going to walk slow and look down often. Typically at the end of the walks, participants meet in Utica to have a late lunch and socialize.

We’ll meet in the Illinois Canyon parking lot on IL Rt 71 in the east part of the park at 9am. If you need directions or want to coordinate a carpool, contact Ray at wronk51@msn.com. GPS coordinates for the parking lot are 41.308825, -88.938815. (Google maps address is 1172 IL 71, Ottawa, IL)

Carpooling is strongly encouraged due to the limited number of parking spaces in the Illinois Canyon parking lot. This outing is limited to 10 vehicles.

There is no fee but a voluntary donation ($3 suggested) will be accepted to help defray the expenses of the Meetup site.

What to bring:

• waterproof boots, or shoes that you don’t mind getting wet and muddy
• rain gear (if raining)
• water
• trail snacks if desired
• bag to carry trash out
• camera/lenses if desired
• pet waste bags (if bringing your dog)

The leaders will be taking pictures to post. Participants are encouraged to also share and post pictures.

Protect the Aquifer
Monday, April 21, 7:00pm

Join us in a presentation where Pam Richart and Lan Richart, Co-Directors of the Eco-Justice Collaborative in Champaign IL, will discuss the Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines and ban CO2 sequestration under the Mahomet Aquifer. A crucial water source for nearly one million people, the aquifer is threatened by potential leaks and contamination from CO2 underground storage, leaving no other feasible drinking water sources for the area.

The Mahomet Aquifer is a crucial water source in Illinois. It supplies millions of gallons of water daily to nearly 1 million people for residential, industrial, and agricultural uses. In 2015, the U.S. EPA declared it a sole-source aquifer, meaning that its contamination
would create a major health hazard, as there are no other feasible drinking water sources for the area.

The Illinois Basin’s geology is considered ideal for storing CO2 underground. The IRS tax credit known as 45Q makes the capture, transport, and storage of CO2 waste financially viable. However, storing CO2 under an aquifer involves the risks of leaks and contamination. There is no guarantee that highly pressurized carbon stored underground won't leak into aquifers. When CO2 combines with water, it forms carbonic acid, which can leach harmful heavy metals like arsenic and lead into water supplies. Consumption of heavy metals can lead to acute and chronic toxicity, liver, kidney, and intestinal damage, anemia, and cancer.

Founded in 2007, the Eco-Justice Collaborative (EJC) is a non-profit that integrates economic, environmental, and social justice into solutions that address climate change. Successful campaigns have brought about the closure of Chicago’s two coal-fired power plants, the removal of coal ash from Illinois’ only National Scenic River, and the drafting and passage of the
Coal Ash Pollution Act.

Pam Richart, a land use planner, played a key role in drafting and passing Illinois’s CCS regulatory bill, signed in July of last year. She coordinates the work of the Illinois Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines, which helped stop two dangerous CO2 pipelines that otherwise would have passed through Illinois. Concurrently, she is working to protect drinking water sources such as the Mahomet Aquifer from potential pollution associated with CO2 storage.

Lan Richart is an ecologist who has spent over 20 years as a consultant evaluating the environmental impacts of major projects pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act and working to protect natural resources in conjunction with private development. Lan co-founded the Coalition to Stop CO2 Pipelines and also is part of the work to protect the Mahomet Aquifer. In addition, he serves on a national working group that is
researching the impacts of CCS on water quality and consumption.

Monday, April 21, 7:00pm
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86468143987