Prairie Rivers Network

The rivers are the place where nature still exists.

In 1967 under the guidance of Bruce and Patricia Hannon, the non-profit Committee on Allerton Park was formed in opposition to the construction of the Army Corps of Engineers’ Oakley Reservoir Dam on the Sangamon River near Decatur Illinois. The proposed reservoir would have submerged hundreds of acres of Allerton Park, one of the most beloved areas in Central Illinois, and flooded thousands more acres along its borders. The fight continued for years, with its appropriation progress being stopped in 1975 and finally deauthorizing it at the federal level in 1985. The Oakley Dam Reservoir project had been on the table since 1945. The original Committee on Allerton Park underwent several name changes over the years and, in 1998, was renamed Prairie Rivers Network, a name it continues to use today. This marked the first of many environmental victories for Illinois, a trend that would continue from this most important organization, which has had a direct impact on those of us who engage in the silent sports.

Since 2012 PRN has been fighting for canoeists, kayakers, tubers and paddleboarders, for protection and cleanup of the only section of river in Illinois that is included in the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The WSRS was created in 1968, “to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free-flowing condition for the enjoyment of present and future generations.” In 1989, a 17.1-mile section of the Middle Fork of the Vermillion River near Danville, Illinois, was designated as “scenic” and added to the WSRS lineup. According to American Rivers, this portion of the river hosts over 10,000 paddlers per year. Having canoed this beautiful segment several times, I can tell you that it is worthy of its designation. Unfortunately, the Middle Fork has been subjected to runoff from toxic coal ash storage pits for years. These storage pits, which are part of a shuttered coal-fired power plant, sit in the western floodplain of this section of the river. In 2023 the Illinois attorney general ruled that Dynegy, the company responsible, is required to remove the pits. Today, the removal plan is under review by the EPA, and PRN’s “Clean Water Forever” campaign will continue to stay focused and involved in its progress. This is a huge victory for PRN, the environment, and the people of Illinois.

Prairie Rivers Network is also involved in and advocating for the reclamation of abandoned land mine sites throughout the state with its support of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Illinois’ own Abandoned Mine Land project. Reclaiming strip-mining areas and turning them into parks, with the bonus of creating jobs and income, has a history in Illinois with places like Pyramid, Kickapoo, and Sahara Woods State Recreation Areas. These once ugly and dangerous landscapes have been transformed into fantastic outdoor playgrounds that offer miles and miles of trails for hiking and biking, as well as a unique paddling experience. As an example, Pyramid SRA, located in southern Illinois near the town of Pinckneyville in Perry County, has over 50 lakes that range in size from 0.1 to 276 acres. For adventure-seeking canoeists, the original section, which has many lakes that can be reached only on foot, offers a mini–Boundary Waters experience with its many portaging and camping options. Through additional acquisition of land, the park has grown to over 19,000 acres, making it the largest Recreation Area in the state. Prairie Rivers Network has been vital in securing funding for abandoned mine land reclamation and continues working to make certain these funds, as well as those from the Inflation Reduction Act, are used effectively.

Maggie Bruns was named the Executive Director at Prairie Rivers Network in 2023. Ms. Bruns has almost two decades of experience working on local, state, and federal environmental campaigns and programs.

Asked to identify the issues facing PRN today, Bruns said, “The biggest challenge we face is that of mitigating the climate crisis threatening our future. Not only do we need to transform our energy sources, but we need to build resilience to withstand extreme storms, temperatures, and all the havoc that’s coming. A lot of that work will focus on land use in Illinois. Right now, most of our state is tied up in a forced desert of corn and soybeans. We believe that needs to change if people want to survive. By changing the way we farm and balancing the needs of wildlife, including creating more habitat, we will build pathways for the migration of wildlife moving north from rising temperatures. This will inevitably lead to more places to recreate, and we know that’s desperately needed here.”

The most concerning issue today for any person who enjoys launching their canoe, kayak, tube, or paddleboard in an Illinois stream or river is which bodies of water they have legal access to.

Due to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ interpretation of the law, the public only has legal access to 2 percent of the 87,110 miles of waterways within the state’s borders. When the map of all the rivers and streams that are legally accessible, shown on the IDNR website and colored blue, is overlaid with streams that are not accessible, colored red, it looks like someone threw a few small pieces of blue string on a red canvas. For reasons that vary depending on whom you speak with or what you read, the confusion concerning this law stems from the state’s failure to clarify the language, which is the source of both interpretation and enforcement issues. I state simply, but of course it isn’t as state, and federal laws apply to the situation. This issue is explained in Mike Svobs’ book, Paddling Illinois, a valuable resource to identify which rivers are legally accessible. The Illinois Department of Resources website under Water Resources is also a source.

Enter Illinois HB1873. This bill, introduced with support from PRN and many others, stands to clarify the issue of “navigable waters” and bring Illinois in line with its neighboring states. Attempts to explain the law have been tried before but the recent request by the Illinois Supreme Court for lawmakers to address this situation seems to have put some momentum behind the effort. It is important to note that HB1873 does not change littering or trespassing laws, nor does it affect current property owner rights.

In addition to everything else they do, each year since 2005, PRN has awarded an individual with the River Steward Award. This award acknowledges the crucial work done in the trenches to protect the state’s rivers and streams by people who do many tasks, including monitoring water quality and ecology, looking for invasive species, checking for pollution and its cause, writing letters, updating databases, and reporting logjams, which is especially important to paddlers. There are many volunteers in Illinois who dedicate hours of their free time through various organizations throughout the state to make sure that our rivers and streams are safe for us to recreate in, and PRN does not let their work go without celebration.

Through legal and grassroots efforts, social media, and more, PRN has been fighting for environmental issues for over 50 years, and its presence is needed now more than ever. In a time when our federal government has a disdain for environmental protection, we will need to step up to the plate like never before at the state and local levels to make a difference.

Countless studies consistently demonstrate that time spent outdoors has a beneficial mental and social impact on people every day, revealing itself in more ways than were previously understood. The National Recreation and Park Association’s report, titled “Economic Impact of Local Parks,” ranked Illinois fifth in income from park and park-related activities, totaling $ 8 billion.

When Americans are surveyed and asked whether they support environmental protection, they consistently answer 65 percent to 80 percent that they do. It appears somewhat odd and frustrating that, despite all evidence, we still must fight for something that seems so obvious and beneficial.

It took many years of effort to stop the Oakley Dam project. Today the Sangamon River flows unimpeded through Allerton Park, its 15 miles of hiking trails are still open, the old growth trees still stand, and so does the organization that stood up and made their voices heard. Silent sports enthusiasts have been benefiting from their hard work since its inception and today PRN exists to do as it always has-Protect Water, Heal Land and Inspire Change.