Question #2: How can the District make ecosystem services and their values relevant to different groups and community networks?

Transcription

1 2018 Conservation Congress Conversation Summaries Conversation 1 - THE VALUE OF NATURE: ECOSYSTEM $ERVICES Question #1: What are the top four ecosystem services the District should focus on in their communication, measurement, etc. All groups indicated that the Conservation District should focus on groundwater recharge, flood control, and wetland preservation (and bring the data to the County Board to show cost-benefit analysis). Other mentions included focusing on providing green corridors, carbon storage, biodiversity, erosion, air quality, aesthetic values, ecotourism, recreation and the promotional of healthy living. Question #2: How can the District make ecosystem services and their values relevant to different groups and community networks? The Conversation District should keep pushing education and the importance of flood control; help residents see what is in their own backyard; get neighbors involved in community corridors and use partners to spread the word; and use a speaker s bureau to get out to clubs and civic service organizations (i.e., Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis) groups. Additionally, do more targeted marketing, more social media aimed at younger audiences, and get into the schools and 4H groups. Finally, included more signage or campaign slogans like This view preserved for you but instead something like, This clean water brought to you by MCCD, or This groundwater recharge area brought to you by MCCD, or This flood control area brought to you by MCCD. Question #3: How does the District best communicate and demonstrate the value of ecosystem services to different groups and community networks? Provide graphics/interpretive displays at PEC and LVVC about how groundwater works. Use simple displays like billboards and posters to catch the attention of a lot of people - one with a picture of a faucet that says, Every time you turn on the faucet, you re using MCCD ecosystem services; or a picture of a kid holding a fish he just caught with his dad beside him and the billboard says, This moment brought to you by MCCD. Get all conservation/environmental groups working together to collaborate. See if partners would include/share information in their newsletters. Get data info to the McHenry County Economic Development Corporation. Partner with different groups like park districts to get kids into the outdoors; Create a District App., speaker s bureau, more signage/interpretive signs on sites that relate/educate to the ecosystem services and more social media. Question #4: How do we educate elected/appointed officials and McHenry County residents on the value of ecosystem services? Host workshops, conservation district tours, hike with a Politian Day, or declare an official hiking day. Connect messages to their political platforms, offer town hall meetings and remind them that the District offers the most for the littlest amount of tax dollars. We need to keep talking about the value for the dollar of what the District does. Even if a person does not directly use District land, you are reaping the monetary benefit of its ecosystem services. Additionally, people complain about the District taking land off the county s tax roll although the District is the 3 rd largest taxpayer in the county. That information needs to get out there. Question #5: How do we get the word out? Direct more of the budget to marketing to promote the value of ecosystem services. The District needs a speaker s bureau to do a commercial for the District to varied groups. That way we are always keeping the District name in people s heads. Place ads at the train stations. Start a social media campaign. Utilize timely press releases like after a flood. Add interpretive signage on sites about ecosystem services.

2 CONVERSATION2 - FUNDING THE DREAM Question #1: How does the District maintain public lands, waters, and trails without adequate funding? Expand the volunteer program. Involve veteran s groups, high school groups and businesses looking to green up their image. (The District can offer an outlet to add to the environmental credibility of a business and in return, we get funding for projects.) Other ideas included: increase the amount of revenue from agricultural leases; start an Adopta-Park to either volunteer or fund projects at a specific site; partner with other groups to increase opportunities for grants to fund District projects; do more sponsorships; charge for programs and giveaways like popcorn, fundraise; add donation boxes; and charge trail fees. Question #2: Given the current economic and political landscape, what role can the delegates have in educating, persuading, and convincing residents, neighbors, co-workers, and federal, state, and local elected/appointed officials on the value of investing in public lands, waters, and trails? We need a grassroots effort and spokespersons to bring the message to the public. The District should collaborate with local tourism agencies to educate and get the District s message out and inform supporters of the importance of speaking up for conservation issues. The District should show impact of public lands and open space, the return on investment that it is an investment not an expense. Promote recreation. Go for an advisory referendum. To help educate and get the word out: use editorial boards, social media, host tours and walkabouts and get them onsite, focus. Finally, provide an list of Conservation Congress 2018 attendees to delegates so they can network and communicate with one another. Questions #3: If sound science and facts are not enough to garner support and change minds, what strategies are needed to convince elected officials to be bold and vote their conscience for conservation? Invite elected officials on site tours or to programs so they can see how the District influences the community. Team up with businesses that benefit from District open spaces. Encourage businesses to speak up to officials about how important open space is to the success of their business, which impacts revenue for the county. Host Town Hall meetings, site tours, get county board members to attend Conservation Congress, and host high-visibility countywide events like a Battle of the Brush Pile workday competition. Question #4: Is the District being responsible in managing and stewarding the county s public lands, waters, and trails without levying the full allocation of property taxes it is allowed to take under the law? The District should be taking the full allocation but can understand the difficult political climate we are in. The District should communicate that they are not taking all the money allotted to them residents/voters don t know this. On the other hand, there is no easy answer people do not want more taxes - so it is good the District is not taking the full levy right now. Take all the money there is no right or wrong. The District should have an advisory referendum that ASKS people if they would be open to spending more tax money for the District - that way you re giving the public control and you re not taking their money, you giving them to power to support the causes they believe in. In addition, if the public says yes, they believe the District is worth spending money on, then you have the backing. Put together a series of articles for newspapers on budgets, expenditures and what we are losing out on without the additional revenue sources i.e. restoration of sites, air quality, and water quality. Keep exploring alternative revenue ideas.

3 Conversation #3 - WATER KEEPING IT ON THE LAND! Question #1 How can the district best contribute to the preservation of groundwater, surface water and flood control in McHenry County? Every groups included acquire property or purchase land with water recharge potential, in floodplains, or as buffers around streams. Other comments included: offer public program about geology and hydrology; get information to property owners about Best Management Practices (BMPs); develop rain barrel program; partner with townships to plant native species along right-of-ways; encourage the use of sand instead of salt; educate use more natural substances and the sale and use of salt tolerant plants to take up chlorides. Additional comments included do more wetland restoration, use LIDAR imaging to show where to build vegetated swales to capture runoff, keep waterways clear of obstructions, get information to communities along rivers and provided educational materials to other non-traditional venues like farmer s markets, homeowners associations, and McSEEP. Question #2 What can McHenry County do to preserve existing non-protected groundwater recharge areas? This conversation generated a series of ideas: Buy them. Acquire more lands that have hydric soils and flood properties. Declare flood plains unbuildable. Require all farmers to have buffer strips from streams and waterways. Publicize county recharge map. Keep in touch with legislators. Add Signage: You are now entering watershed to make people aware of the bigger picture. Educate the public on rain gardens and rain barrels and develop rain barrel program. Promote and educate the public on the use of salt. Collaborate with McDOT to plant living snow fences. Host water quality seminars. Educate about native plants for improving water recharge and runoff. Educate on how groundwater contamination affects rivers/streams/wetlands. Assign a value to the degradation of aquifers and how this directly affects the public. Question #3 How can your group/organization partner with MCCD to further the importance of groundwater recharge, management of surface water and flood control? This conversation generated a series of ideas: Get grants to plant native species along roadsides. Partner with school science classes to monitor chlorides in streams. Have a Watershed Festival to educate people. Increase public awareness. Identify recharge areas, partner with municipalities, and clean it up. Partner/encourage support for initiatives like bike to work day, turn in prescription medications. Provide education to homeowners on how they can geographically follow their water supply where it comes from and where it goes. Educate homeowner s associations.

4 CONVERSATION #4 GEOTOURISM: OUTDOOR RECREATION AS AN ECONOMIC DRIVER Question #1: How can the District take advantage of the Geotourism impact of use of public lands, waters, and trails? This conversation generated a series of ideas: Get the message out in something like a tourism commercial showing all the activities people do on District sites and saying, Hey, guess what? All this is happening in McHenry County! Increase signage on Prairie Trail with wayfinding signs to shops and businesses and add to maps. Engage Hispanic community. Create niche targeted programs like Become an Outdoor Women. Track number of users and share with retailers/business who could be benefiting. Have a forum/stakeholders meeting to talk out ecotourism with businesses. The District should be a member of the local Chamber of Commerce. Play up the District as a destination. Create more District specific apps. Create a Junior Ranger Program or one like NPS Passport program. Create geo-filters for snapchat social media. More younger generation representatives at congress. Market to Chicago media outlets and things like Metromix. Have an advertising campaign with Metra similar to the campaign the City of Woodstock did. Instagram contests. More Social media target groups. Partner with tourism bureaus and businesses for shared ad costs to market to bring people out to McHenry County. Partner with other conservation groups like Friends of Hackmatack and/or The Land Conservancy to create a regional marketing strategy. The District should look at diversifying their funding sources since geotourism might bring a lot of people out of their tax base. Create guides for outdoor sports have live bait, rental equipment for use on our sites. Host Conservation expo and/or have a booth at Ag Expo and Chamber Expos. Host larger events like trail runs / marathons / bike-a-thons. Work with fishing and hunting groups to expand reach and connections. Question #2: How can the District forge a closer relationship with local units of government and businesses that support conservation and benefit directly and indirectly from our services/industry? Coop with business to assist with linking users to community. Invite businesses to the Conservation Congress, District sites and events. Expose them to what the District does and how it can benefit their business through increased revenues. Partner with businesses to also include businesses (like sites for dining, outdoor supplies, etc.) on maps for people using trails and sites. Involve Bookstores/Book clubs/library partnership one place did a Hiking Book Read. A group hiked a trail and then would stop along the way and read a certain amount of a book, or certain passages from a book that would pertain to the view/nature/season the hikers were experiencing. Reach out to corporations for workdays. Look for corporate sponsors. More smaller / localized sponsorship with businesses candlelight ski. Many businesses sponsor volunteer workdays with their employees. Follow and tag them on social media. Seek trail segment sponsorships. Work with Chambers of Commerce Lunch & Launch event go canoeing. Reach out to Rotaries Jaycees Elk groups. Evolve current programming. Tap into Centegra. Expand short videos how to set up a tent etc. start a blog, loan out conservation materials. Questions #3 & #4: How does the District get the local business community to stand up for conservation and help local municipalities become gateways to District sites and trails? The District can identify/show recognition to businesses that promote conservation by recognizing those businesses in District marketing. Examples include putting supportive business on District site/area maps or putting those businesses on a list at visitor s centers so when people are visiting a site or calling a facility, staff can make a recommendation to the public. Partner with bike shops. We promote biking the Prairie Trail and bike shops would donate $5 for every bike sold to the District. Explore more neighborhood access areas. The McHenry County Division of Transportation has numerous projects with the District and wants to see us grow. The City of McHenry and the McHenry County Division of Transportation are exploring a bike share program and you know users are going to be on District trails. Cross promote activities with park district and provide links on website. More cooperative programming to establish partnerships. Provide snap chat opportunities, social media pushes, a geo selfie program and self-guided tours apps or reward incentive program. Partner with bigger outdoor retailers like Dick s Sporting Goods.

5 We always talk about the Chicago area but Rockford represents a huge opportunity for McHenry County. Many people travel to Lake Geneva for the weekend but McHenry County has the same if not more to give, and less expensive!