Illinois Success Story

EQIP Assistance on a Watershed Scale

By: Jill Creamean, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist
Date: December 2002

Landowners in the LaMotte Creek Watershed in east-central Crawford County received approximately $120,000 in funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) in 2002. Funds offset installation costs of conservation practices that mitigate flooding, reduce erosion and sedimentation, and improve water quality in the watershed and also improve the health, safety, and prosperity of area citizens.

Seven landowners received EQIP funds to install practices such as grassed waterways, terraces, pasture and hayland planting, and grade stabilization and flood control structures. These practices will benefit the land and the communities in the area.

NRCS began working with area landowners on a watershed scale in 1999, when the Crawford County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and local landowners and stakeholders formed the LaMotte Creek Watershed Planning Committee. NRCS/SWCD served as advisors on the Technical Committee to offer expertise on resource issues and solutions. NRCS technical specialists inventoried the resources and soil erosion in the watershed.

The Planning Committee used NRCS technical information such as soils data, erosion and sedimentation studies, and conservation practice and planning information to create the LaMotte Creek Watershed Plan, which was released in March 2002. The Plan contains a detailed analysis of natural resource issues, proposes solutions, and initiates a plan of work with measurable goals and objectives. Primary concerns focused on flooding issues in and around the Village of Palestine.

To date, several goals outlined in the Watershed Plan have been met. The Planning Committee was instrumental in developing a strategy and working with local entities to repair a breach in the retaining structure at the Robinson Municipal Airport and to repair damaged tile in the Frog Pond Drainage District.

The Planning Committee worked with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) to hold a Timber Stand Improvement workshop to explore methods to improve tree stands, thereby increasing the ability of the site to hold soil and improve water quality and to increase cover for wildlife. The Planning Committee also worked with the Mary Heath Foundation to conduct a watershed tour to illustrate the proposed resource solutions outlined in the Watershed Plan. The Committee used NRCS EQIP Education Grant funds to develop a video to inform people in and around the watershed on watershed issues and solutions.

The Watershed Plan is comprehensive and will take time to complete. Once in place, all resources in the LaMotte Creek Watershed will be improved.