Upcoming Seminar: “Challenges to Sustainability in Central Illinois”, Sundays, April 8, 15 and 22 at 11:00 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. From the time European immigrants first settled the rich prairies of Central Illinois, the area has offered its inhabitants a livable environment with diverse flora and fauna, highly productive farmland, space for development, and abundant clean water. But the ecosystem that has sustained both the human and natural community is increasingly threatened. This seminar series will explore some of the threats and consider how citizens can engage to reduce them.
Sunday, April 8 – Threatened and Endangered Amphibians and Reptiles in Illinois: Who are they, what habitat changes imperil them, and why does their status matter?
Chris A. Phillips, Herpetologist, Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois; former member of the Illinois Endangered Species Protection Board.
Sunday, April 15 – The Mahomet Aquifer, Our Source of Abundant Fresh Water: Does a growing human population, increasing agricultural and industrial use, and contamination threaten sustainability of the aquifer?
Allen Wehrmann, former head of the Groundwater Section of the Illinois State Water Survey and currently a Senior Groundwater Engineer with INTERA Incorporated.
Sunday, April 22 – Development in Champaign County: Does the county’s Land Resource Management Plan protect the long-term viability of agriculture and the land resource base, ensure urban development that is compact and contiguous to already-developed areas, and guarantee social and economically desirable use of these resources?
Frank DiNovo, retired Director of Planning and Community Development with the Champaign Regional Planning Commission and currently a member of the Champaign County Zoning Board of Appeals.