http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wium/local-wium-926354.mp3
Macomb, IL – Plans have been developed to reduce pollution in Spring Lake in Macomb. Now it's a matter of making sure farmers and property owners follow through.
The plans were developed during public meetings that were held with various stakeholders this summer. The meetings offered them the chance to come up with and vote on their own solutions.
One such solution is to plant perennial grasses, which have deep roots that can help reduce soil erosion into the lake. In addition, the plants can be harvested and sold for bio-energy.
Noelle Harden, University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate student, helped organize the meetings. She will be following up with people this fall to find out if plans are being implemented.
Harden said the USDA office in Macomb will offer an added incentive.
"They have this grant money from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and they're planning on taking applications. There's money to support various conservation practices, including some of those that were voted in already," Harden said.
She said the USDA office will start signing up farmers and landowners during the first week of October. Applicants should ask about the Section 319 grant.
Harden said it can be difficult to convince some people to try something new, such as a conservation program, on their land. But she hopes the watershed's farmers are willing to give it a try.
"No farmer wants to be losing soil off of his or her field, or losing fertilizer that he or she spent money on," Harden said.
"They have to think about the bottom line and their pocketbook just as much as everybody else does. I hope that having a process that is not so top-down from the government as it is community driven, and having people democratically come up with their own strategies as a community - I do hope that can help bring some more people on board with some of these practices."
Spring Lake has 59% too much phosphorous. An abundance of phosphorous in waters can kill fish and plant life. Studies are underway to determine the source(s) of the phosphorous.
Harden said it's difficult to know how soon progress will be noticeable if farmers and property owners in the watershed take steps to reduce soil erosion. In the meantime, she hopes more people become more educated about polluted waterways. She said that can lead to changes in policy.
"I see that as being really important for the future of not just Spring Lake but many water bodies on the EPA's impaired water bodies list," Harden said. "I think it would be good for us to think more broadly about what we can do as a society to make it easier to conserve the soil or conserve the water."