Expiration date: 3/28/2015
This Notice Announces a Prospectus for the Heartlands Conservancy’s (program sponsor) Southwestern Illinois Stream and Wetland In-Lieu-Fee Mitigation Program. Pursuant to the Final Rule for the Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources, referred to as the Mitigation Rule (33 CFR Parts 325 and 332, and 40 CFR Part 230), dated April 10, 2008; this notice announces a prospectus for the establishment of a in-lieu fee (ILF) mitigation program. The Southwestern Illinois Stream and Wetland In-Lieu-Fee Mitigation Program (ILF Program) would operate within the Cahokia-Joachim (07140101) and Lower Kaskaskia (07140204) watersheds, in the State of Illinois. The two watersheds/service areas encompass all of St. Clair and Monroe Counties and portions of Madison, Macoupin, Montgomery, Bond, Clinton, Washington, Randolph and Perry Counties. The program sponsor may request future modifications to the ILF program that would expand the program into adjacent watersheds. Heartlands Conservancy is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) corporation in Mascoutah, Illinois. Incorporated in 1989, the organization operated under the name Southwestern Illinois Resource Conservation & Development until 2012. The mission of the organization is to provide leadership and solutions to sustain and enrich the environmental resources of southwestern Illinois. Heartland Conservancy focuses its efforts on three program areas: land conservation, building greener communities and engaging individuals with nature. The Public Notice comment period is open for 30-days starting on February 27, 2015 and closes March 28, 2015.