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| [ Introduced ] | [ House Amendment 001 ] |
92_HR0200enr HR200 Enrolled LRB9208631LBgc 1 HOUSE RESOLUTION 200 2 WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court, on January 9, 3 2001, rendered its decision in Solid Waste Agency of Northern 4 Cook County v. Army Corps of Engineers, holding that 5 nonnavigable, isolated, intrastate waterways serving as 6 habitat for migratory birds cannot be interpreted to be 7 waters requiring a discharge permit for the discharge of 8 dredged or fill material into them; and 9 WHEREAS, Local governments have long relied on federal 10 protection of these bodies of water under the federal Clean 11 Water Act; that this decision sharply limits the types of 12 bodies of water for which Section 404 permits are required; 13 and 14 WHEREAS, These bodies of water are now in danger of harm 15 and elimination in the absence of permitting or oversight on 16 the part of any public agency at the federal, State, or local 17 level; Illinois has relied upon federal protections as a 18 critically important element of stormwater management and 19 protection plans; and 20 WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court decision has 21 left Illinois without a program in place that provides 22 protection to these bodies of water; and 23 WHEREAS, At the time of statehood in 1818 wetlands 24 covered more than 8 million acres, or 25 percent, of 25 Illinois; as a result of human modification of the 26 environment, an estimated 90 percent of those wetlands have 27 been lost; and 28 WHEREAS, The National Wetlands Inventory of Illinois 29 documented that wetlands of all types occupy about 1.25 30 million acres, or 3.5 percent, of the total area of Illinois, 31 of which isolated wetlands account for 12 percent of the HR200 Enrolled -2- LRB9208631LBgc 1 total extent of wetland coverage, or 152,203 acres; and 2 WHEREAS, These isolated wetlands provide public benefit 3 by (1) reducing flood damage through absorbing, storing, and 4 conveying peak flows from storm events, improving water by 5 serving as basins for sedimentation, nutrient cycling, and 6 filtering, (2) replenishing groundwater supplies through 7 infiltration, (3) providing important breeding, nesting, 8 foraging, and migratory habitat for approximately 40 percent 9 of the State's endangered and threatened species and to other 10 species of fish, wildlife, waterfowl, and shore birds, (4) 11 serving as recreational areas for hunting, fishing, boating, 12 hiking, wildlife watching, photography, and other uses, and 13 (5) providing open space and aesthetic value; and 14 WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court decision 15 authorizes state and local governments to regulate these 16 critically important bodies of water; therefore, be it 17 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 18 NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that 19 we urge the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to 20 identify and report an inventory of each of the bodies of 21 water that will no longer be protected by the federal Clean 22 Water Act as a result of the recent United States Supreme 23 Court decision in Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County 24 v. Army Corps of Engineers; and be it further 25 RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Natural 26 Resources assess potential impacts related to flooding, 27 wildlife habitat, and groundwater supplies and the Illinois 28 Environmental Protection Agency assess the impact on water 29 quality that may result from the absence of federal 30 protection of those bodies of water and report those findings 31 to the House by March 1, 2002; and be it further 32 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be HR200 Enrolled -3- LRB9208631LBgc 1 presented to the Director of Natural Resources, the Director 2 of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Speaker of the 3 House, and the Minority Leader of the House.