History
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McDonough County Groundwater Protection Education Committee was formed in the fall of 1994 in order to combine the efforts of local agencies in promoting protection of our valuable resource: Groundwater. McDonough County is made up of 10 communities, the largest having 20,000 residents, and the smallest 100 residents. It ranks 37th in the states 102 counties. In addition Western Illinois University, a 4-year institution with an enrollment of about 12,500 and a Master's Degree Program, and the county seat are located in Macomb. Approximately 90% of the land in McDonough County is classified as farmland, the primary crops being corn and soybeans. Macomb uses Spring Lake as it's main water source, and does have back-up wells, whereas the town of Blandinsville uses surface water. Other towns in McDonough County, however, use well water. While there are resources of information available to farmers regarding groundwater protection, the majority of McDonough county area citizens are unaware of their own influence on groundwater. Therefore, in May of 1994 during a Groundwater Video Conference sponsored by the McDonough County League of Women Voters, the lack for groundwater protection activities within McDonough County became obvious to some community officials in attendance. In July of 1994 the McDonough County League of Women Voters and the McDonough County Health Department jointly took the initiative in forming me Groundwater Protection Education Committee and establishing a mission statement for the committee. A meeting was set for that September and all potential committee members were invited to discuss tentative goals and objectives in order to develop a countywide groundwater protection education program for McDonough county residents. Two coordinators, one from the McDonough County League of Women Voters and one from the McDonough County Health Department were designated in order to have the balanced leadership necessary for any committee to be successful. The goal was to inform and educate every resident in McDonough County through schools, the general population, rural residents, agencies, and organizations of the need to protect our natural resource. The primary objective of the committee was to identify abandoned/poorly maintained wells as a priority groundwater problem and to plan and sponsor demonstrations of proper well sealing. It was also in the plans to develop seminars on groundwater protection topics and provide a groundwater protection speakers list to schools, civic groups, farm organizations and other organized groups. The McDonough County Health Department provided the initial funds for the committee and a service of providing seminars, typing, mailing, and staff time. The committee has recently received monetary contributions from the Environmental Committee of the County Board. The Charter Members of the Groundwater Protection Education Committee included the McDonough County Farm Bureau, the McDonough County Soil and Water Conservation District, the McDonough County League of Women Voters, the McDonough County Extension Service, Macomb City Water Department, and the McDonough County Health Department. Since that time we have added an environmentally concerned citizen, a representative of the Environmental Committee of the McDonough County Board, a Natural Resources Management Educator, and WIU Geology Department. That same year in November a representative from the committee was sent to a training "Protecting Groundwater: Promoting, Understanding, Accepting Responsibility & Taking Action". In March an Environmental Health Expo together with a Hazardous Waste Seminar was held for the community. During June and August an abandoned well was sealed as a demonstration for local realtors and interested citizens. Later a listing of presentations available by various speakers regarding various water-related topics was compiled. This was made available for the area communities to enhance the knowledge of the water resources. The list was made available upon request by contacting the Extension Office, Farm Bureau, League of Women Voters, McDonough County Health Department and the Soil & Water Conservation Office. In February 1996 the committee joined the Groundwater Guardian program of the Nebraska-based Groundwater Foundation, and continues to be recognized annually as a Groundwater Guardian Community. This national foundation is designed to empower citizens to initiate groundwater protection in their communities. To remain a recognized Groundwater Guardian Community, the committee must submit three Result Oriented Activities (ROA’s) as objectives for that year. However, for most of the years, the committee has conducted at least seven activities. Recently the Groundwater Protection Education Committee joined partnership with the Lamoine River Ecosystem to integrate our efforts to encourage landowners to enhance and protect the watershed through ecosystem-based management.
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The Groundwater Guardian logo was reproduced from groundwater.org with the permission of The Groundwater Foundation. Copyright ©2002 The Groundwater Foundation. All Rights Reserved. Send mail to
SW-Bennett1@wiu.edu with
questions or comments about this web site.
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