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Goal 3 - How does CREP try to achieve this goal?
The health of the small streams these fish and aquatic insects call home is almost entirely dependent upon the use of the surrounding land¹. When land is farmed the topsoil is disturbed and can be washed into the streams when the area floods. Any chemicals (pesticides, and fertilizers) that have been applied to the land are washed into the streams as well.Agricultural runoff damages the aquatic environment by impacting stream clarity, dissolved oxygen, and nutrient levels. If damage becomes too severe the fish and insects that populate the stream will die.
Scientists have proven a link between increased soil erosion from agricultural production adjacent to waterways and a decline in local fish populations²
CREP targets land in the 100-year floodplain in the Illinois and Kaskaskia rivers. By taking this land out of agricultural production and installing natural cover, CREP effectively prevents soil and chemical runoff into the waterways. Protecting aquatic habitat at the watershed level costs less than targeting individual species and has much better results in increasing fish, mussel, and aquatic insect populations¹. This practice preserves the health of the freshwater habitats within the river basins and everything downstream, allowing for healthier wildlife and more recreational opportunities.
¹ Williams Jack E., Williams Richard N., Russel F., Elwell Leah, Philipp P. David, Harris Fred A., Jeffrey L., Martinez Patrick J., Miller Dirk., Reeves Gordon H., Frissell Christopher A., Sedell James R. “Native fish conservation areas: a vision for large scale conservation of native fish communities”, Fisheries 36:6, 2011.
² McClelland Michael A., Sass Greg G., Cook Thad R., Irons Kevin S., Michaels Merissa N., O’Hara T. Matthew, Smith Cammy S. “The long-term Illinois river fish population monitoring program”, Fisheries 37:8, 2012