Stop the Destruction Eagle Nesting / Roosting Habitat
We believe that the IDNR issued this permit without due consideration of its ecological impact and that, if the mining proceeds as proposed, it will be in violation of the Endangered Species Act, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
We are sending this petition to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to ask them to investigate and stop this mining activity before it destroys sensitive habitat between Banner Marsh State Fish & Wildlife Area and Rice Lake Conservation Area, and area, where Bald Eagles roost in the winter and nest in the spring and summer, where migratory birds, including thousands of Geese, Ducks, Coots, Cormorants, and Pelicans, stop over each spring and fall, and where a federally and state threatened endangered plant, the Decurrent False Aster, thrives.
The proposed mining plans include blasting the coal from the ground during the winter months, when eagles would be roosting nearby. The blasting will surely disturb them. Eagles begin their nesting activities in the winter. The blasting at the proposed mining site would surely disturb nesting eagles.
Please help us stop the destruction of Eagle Nesting and Roosting habitat. Sign this petition, and then, for even greater impact, send a letter directly to the regional USFWS office:
Send the letter certified for even greater impact. Thank you for helping to call attention to this important issue.Field Supervisor: Richard Nelson
1511 47th Avenue
e-mail: RockIsland@fws.gov or MidwestNews@fws.gov
Moline, IL 61265
Phone: 309-757-5800
Fax: 309-757-5807
TTY: 1-800-877-8339
Sincerely,
Jane G. Ward
We believe that the IDNR issued this permit without due consideration of its ecological impact and that, if the mining proceeds as proposed, it will be in violation of the Endangered Species Act, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
We are sending this petition to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to ask them to investigate and stop this mining activity before it destroys sensitive habitat between Banner Marsh State Fish & Wildlife Area and Rice Lake Conservation Area, and area, where Bald Eagles roost in the winter and nest in the spring and summer, where migratory birds, including thousands of Geese, Ducks, Coots, Cormorants, and Pelicans, stop over each spring and fall, and where a federally and state threatened endangered plant, the Decurrent False Aster, thrives.
The proposed mining plans include blasting the coal from the ground during the winter months, when eagles would be roosting nearby. The blasting will surely disturb them. Eagles begin their nesting activities in the winter. The blasting at the proposed mining site would surely disturb nesting eagles.
Please help us stop the destruction of Eagle Nesting and Roosting habitat. Sign this petition, and then, for even greater impact, send a letter directly to the regional USFWS office:
Send the letter certified for even greater impact. Thank you for helping to call attention to this important issue.Field Supervisor: Richard Nelson
1511 47th Avenue
e-mail: RockIsland@fws.gov or MidwestNews@fws.gov
Moline, IL 61265
Phone: 309-757-5800
Fax: 309-757-5807
TTY: 1-800-877-8339
Sincerely,
Jane G. Ward
Capital Resources Development Company, 222 North LaSalle, Suite 800, Chicago, Illinois 60601, has applied for and has been issued a permit by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to operate a coal mine at the location listed below:
Sections 14 & 15, Township 6 North, Range 5 East, near Banner, Fulton County, Illinois UTM NAD-83 Zone 16, Northing 4487587, Easting 252977; Copperas Creek, Illinois River Mile 138.5.
The applicant proposes to open and operate a surface coal mining operation encompassing 643.2 acres (Proposed Permit Area) of property south of the Village of Banner. The purpose of the project is to extract coal from the Colchester #2 coal seam.
We the undersigned believe that the IDNR issued this permit without due consideration of its ecological impact and that, if the mining proceeds as proposed, it will be in violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service should be aware that eagles nest in the adjacent Rice Lake conservation area and large numbers of bald eagles roost in that area every winter. The USFWS should also be aware that approximately 24 acres of Decurrent False Asters, a federally and state threatened plant, are growing in an approximately 24 acre field in the center of the proposed mining property.
Other state endangered species also use the area.
Osprey nest nearby at Banner Marsh, one of only three currently used sites in the entire state of Illinois.
Short-eared Owls have been observed flying from the proposed mine area into the adjacent Banner Marsh.
Northern Harriers have frequently been observed flying over the proposed mining area.
King Rail have been both seen and heard near the proposed mining area.
Geese, Ducks, Coots, Cormorants, Herons, and Pelicans all use this area during spring and fall migration.
Decurrent False Aster, a federal and state threatened species, abounds in a field in the center of the proposed mining area.
The proposed mining plans include blasting the coal from the ground during the winter months when eagles would be roosting nearby. The blasting will surely disturb them. Eagles begin their nesting activities in the winter. The blasting at the proposed mining site will disturb the nesting eagles.
The osprey, which have nested at nearby Banner Marsh State Fish & Wildlife Area for the past five years, are very sensitive to human activity now, while no mining is going on just across the dikes around Copperas Creek. They will surely be disturbed by mining activity so close to the nest.
Short-eared owls use the area for winter foraging and roosting. The blasting during the winter on the proposed area will disturb these endangered birds that need more, not less habitat to survive in this state. The short-eared owls may be using the proposed mining site as a roosting site. No one has done a survey to find out.
King rail, another endangered species found in the area, will surely be disturbed by the mining activity, as will the thousands of Geese, Ducks, Coots, Cormorants, and Pelicans that use this sensitive area during spring and fall migration.
The field of decurrent false asters is in the center of the proposed mining area. If mining proceeds as proposed, the ground in that area will be removed and piled into a storage area. The aster seeds will be destroyed, the fertile ground upon which they thrive will be destroyed, and the asters will never thrive in this area again.
Then consider the hydrology of the area. According to the hydrologist hired by the petitioners in preparation for hearings being held at the IDNR, if the proposed mining takes place, the water from Banner Marsh will likely drain into the proposed mining area, which will, according to the proposed mining plans, then be pumped into holding ponds before being released into Rice Lake.
The mine discharge water will contain toxic heavy metals. These tend to concentrate up the food chain, so that fish, and birds which prey on the fish, such as Bald Eagles and Osprey, will be at significant risk for heavy metal poisoning, as will people who consume the fish. These metals include lead, cadmium, selenium, and arsenic. The Bald Eagles roosting and nesting at Rice Lake feed on fish in the deep lakes and will be consuming these poisons if the mining activity proceeds.
The USFWS must, by law, investigate whether the mining will be in violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and, if it finds the activity will be in violation, the USFWS must stop the mining before it begins to destroy this sensitive habitat.
We the undersigned believe such an investigation has not happened, and that, if the USFWS waits to investigate until after the mining has commenced, it will be too late to save the habitat for the migratory birds using the Illinois River migratory flyway; moreoverly, it will be too late to save the habitat for the state endangered bald eagles, osprey, short-eared owls, and northern harriers and the threatend decurrent false asters. We implore the USFWS to begin an investigation immediately and stop the mining activity before it harms the eagle roosting and nesting habitat and destroys the habitat where a minimum of 24 acres of decurrent false asters are thriving.
We also request that you investigate the disappearance of one of the eagle nests near the proposed mine site. A nest that eagles used in 2006 and part of 2007 was destroyed during the winter of 2007/2008. Some person destroyed that nest, and it is our belief that the USFWS has not investigated this blatant violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Thank you for your time and consideration of this important issue.
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We in KY are fighting this surface mining so much that is ruining our land. Good luck on stopping this violation of the Endangered Species Act and save the birds.
diana summers
Please obey the law and protect the eagles from destruction of their habitat. Permitting mining so close to a community is also a threat to the people who live there.
Please, for God's sake and ours, stop this insane drive to pillage this good Earth. Take a step back and look at the larger picture instead of acting impulsively because of an issue of greed. We don't need more coal mines. That is only a band-aid for a much deeper issue.
Please put the investigation of this surface coal mine permit on your list of important issues to look into. The unnecessary pillaging at the whim of mining company owners is an assault on this Earth and in particular, on the habitat of the Bald and Gold Eagle and the migratory avians. Where are God's creatures to go when we usurp their small portion of this planet for our greedy goals.
You should keep the land the way it is. Untouch.
Please make a decision that will protect endangered wildlife in our state!
go dig a hole somewhere else. we are redneck hunters around here. we like are habitat
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8:14 pm PDT, Oct 8,
Stacy Kraft, Missouri
stop taking habitat away from wildlife to feed our insatiable greed for more energy. When humans realize what they've done it'll be too late to change it. This is a situation into which the USFWS need investigate, whose judgement may require stopping the mining activity. |
As a former resident of Illinois I have birded Banner Marsh many times. Out wildlife need more land preserved for them. We keep pushing them out of their natural area. Illinois does not have enough natural places. Please do not negatively impact what little space out wildlife have.
Please reconsider the above issued permit. Destroying land between two natural wetlands will not be good for the many wildlife that occupy the area.
To the USFWS: This need to be investigated throughly. Too much of our land is being destroyed without thought toward the impact on the surrounds areas and the wildlife involved.
As a consultant working on a Caterpillar project, I lived (mostly) in Peoria for a year and really was delighted to discover all of the patks and preserves in the area, especially thye wetlands. Please save this land for the eagles.
Illinois has so little remaining natural area, particularly wetland,and also large, contiguous areas of wild habitat. Such areas along the Illinois River should be protected and allowed to remain in their natural status. Even restoration after mining results in only marginal and compromised condition.
For more impact, add a personal comment here
Please add a personal comment requesting the USFWS to investigate and stop the mining activity.
Please help save our environment.
Mining is not the answer to our energy problem.
Although from the Chicagoland area, I have birded Banner Marsh on a few occasions. It's obvious how critical this area is to wildlife. Allowing mining at an adjacent site would negatively impact nesting and migratory birds, including bald eagles. The intended development should be stopped.
I am disappointed that our state's DNR issued this permit. My hope is that USFWS will exercise due caution and prudence by investigating impact on both wildlife and habitat and overide the state's permit.
Don't be so ignorant! We need more habitat, not less!
Please stop mining! It's only for profit which impacts nature and it's last resources!
I think the USFWS should do an investigation, and stop the mining activity. This permit should not have been issued.
Henslow's sparrows have been seen at this site, and are a state threatened species. Habitat for Henslow's sparrows in Illinois continues to disappear. I believe this to be a more compelling reason not to mine this area than the loss of Bald Eagle habitat.
Henslow's sparrows have been seen at this site, and are a state threatened species. Habitat for Henslow's sparrows in Illinois continues to disappear. I believe this to be a more compelling reason not to mine this area than the loss of Bald Eagle habitat.
As a bird, frog and bluebird monitor for the DuPage Forest Preserve, I am aware how fragile the system is that supports the wildlife that I observe. I see on the sites the benefit of large buffers between impacted areas and habitats and how the smallest changes can have enormous impacts on the sucessful breeding of wildlife.
Please consider the impact of this on such a fragile area and consider alternatives. And also consider the value of the ecosystem that once gone, will deprive my grandchildren of the majesty of the eagle.
Developers do NOT have to develop every single piece of land. Please leave some prime natural land!
The extensive flooding of the past year should have been a lesson. Putting a mine in a floodplain doesn't seem to make good sense from the environmental or economic perspective.
If USF&W won't protect wildlife and the environment, who will?
This is prime eagle nesting area. Not to mention a major waterfowl stop-over. Leave it be. Thanks,
The proposed area of operation includes large areas of forested wetland in which scarce species such as Pileated Woodpeckers and Prothonotary Warblers breed. The seasonally flooded fields within this area are often used by large numbers of migratory waterfowl. The area under consideration is also situated directly adjacent to two areas of wildlife habitat that are well-known state-wide, the Banner Marsh State Fish and Wildlife Area and the Rice Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area. These sites are very important for both migratory and breeding birds. Rice Lake supports large numbers of migratory ducks, American White Pelicans, herons and egrets and a diverse range of shorebirds. Banner Marsh also is visited by many migratory birds and is a site for several state threatened or endangered breeding species. Ospreys have nested here in recent years, and the marsh is known as a location for King Rails. For example, I noted a King Rail at Banner Marsh on May 9 2006. I also have recorded a Henslow’s Sparrow singing there during the breeding season.
The USFWS should examine the potential impacts of this mine on breeding Bald Eagles, Ospreys and other species before any operations proceed.
Allowing a coal mine on a site directly within the Illinois River's floodplain and on land with endangered species is grossly negligent.
Please consider further investigating before allowing this natural area to be destroyed forever.
