Bill Text: IL SR0702 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Declares the month of September 2024 as River Clean Up Month. Encourages chambers of commerce, convention and visitors bureaus, local economic development organizations, area groups and associations, and local schools and colleges to organize and coordinate local cleanup activities along portions of rivers and waterways in their area. Encourages the State of Illinois to promote September as River Clean Up Month.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-05-25 - Resolution Adopted [SR0702 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2023-SR0702-Introduced.html
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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, Illinois rivers were once a vital part of the | ||||||
| 3 | culture and lives of the Peoria, Kaskaskia, Piankashaw, Wea, | ||||||
| 4 | Miami, Mascoutin, Odawa, Sauk, Mesquaki, Kickapoo, Potawatomi, | ||||||
| 5 | Ojibwe, and Chickasaw peoples who inhabited the land, which | ||||||
| 6 | continues to carry their stories; and
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| 7 | WHEREAS, Illinois rivers have been a vital part of the | ||||||
| 8 | State's history since statehood, including the life of the | ||||||
| 9 | 16th President Abraham Lincoln, the story of the Underground | ||||||
| 10 | Railroad up to and during the Civil War, and part of the | ||||||
| 11 | development story of the City of Chicago; and
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| 12 | WHEREAS, Rivers throughout Illinois are premier natural | ||||||
| 13 | resources, providing water for agriculture, wildlife, | ||||||
| 14 | recreation, and residential and industrial uses; and
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| 15 | WHEREAS, Illinois contains more miles of rivers than any | ||||||
| 16 | other state east of the Mississippi River, and Illinoisans | ||||||
| 17 | throughout the State enjoy recreation on Illinois rivers, | ||||||
| 18 | including boating, fishing, angling, kayaking, canoeing, | ||||||
| 19 | paddleboarding, tubing, and many other sports; and
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| 20 | WHEREAS, Agriculture, water recreation, and water-related | ||||||
| 21 | tourism are key economic drivers in the State, and the values | ||||||
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| 1 | and services associated with watersheds such as clean water | ||||||
| 2 | and energy are critical to the State's overall economic | ||||||
| 3 | health; and
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| 4 | WHEREAS, Tons of trash, junk, and debris are annually | ||||||
| 5 | dumped into Illinois Rivers along its banks, negatively | ||||||
| 6 | impacting riparian wildlife, damaging both the aesthetic and | ||||||
| 7 | biological qualities of a river; and
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| 8 | WHEREAS, Various state legislatures have encouraged | ||||||
| 9 | waterway clean-up activities by designating September as River | ||||||
| 10 | Clean Up Month; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, During the month of September, water levels are | ||||||
| 12 | usually low, temperatures are warm, and colleges and schools | ||||||
| 13 | are in session, all of which present an educational | ||||||
| 14 | opportunity to involve area youth and to highlight the | ||||||
| 15 | importance of clean rivers and waterways; therefore, be it
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| 16 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | ||||||
| 17 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare the month of | ||||||
| 18 | September 2024 as River Clean Up Month in the State of | ||||||
| 19 | Illinois; and be it further
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| 20 | RESOLVED, That we encourage chambers of commerce, | ||||||
| 21 | convention and visitors bureaus, local economic development | ||||||
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| 1 | organizations, area groups and associations, and local schools | ||||||
| 2 | and colleges to organize and coordinate local cleanup | ||||||
| 3 | activities along portions of rivers and waterways in their | ||||||
| 4 | area; and be it further
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