Wednesday, September 03, 2003
Special to suffredin.org

Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin, 13th District, and the North Branch Restoration Project have scheduled a work day at Miami Woods Forest Preserve on Saturday, September 20, 2003 in recognition of National Public Lands Day.

13th District National Public Lands Day Work Site
Saturday, September 20, 2003
9 AM to 4 PM
Miami Woods
(Located on the east side of Caldwell two blocks north of Oakton in Niles. Meet in the Miami Woods parking lot.)

Volunteers are welcome for as long as they wish to participate.

Work day activities will include cutting and clearing brush, collecting seeds, and picking up trash. Work day equipment and supplies will be provided but volunteers are encouraged to bring work gloves if they have them.

For more information call Michelle Devine at 312-603-6383 or the North Branch Restoration Project at 847-729-4642.

Commissioner Suffredin commented, "The Forest Preserve District of Cook County has acquired and preserved over 68,000 acres of open land, which is approximately 11 percent of Cook County's land mass. As one of the seventeen Commissioners elected to maintain and protect our vast public land holdings, I am excited to participate in National Public Lands Day and to help bring attention to the importance of protecting, improving, and expanding the holdings of the Forest Preserve District."

North Branch Restoration Project leader and Forest Preserve Master Steward Jane Balaban commented, "I hope Cook County residents take this opportunity to learn more about our Forest Preserves and contribute to the effort of caring for our local public lands. Our Forest Preserves, with their wonderful diversity of plants and animals, contribute to our quality of life in Cook County in countless ways. This is a special day when we can give something back to the land."

Background on National Public Lands Day:

National Public Lands Day is co-sponsored by the National Environmental Education & Training Foundation, the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Defense, the National Park Service, the Tennessee Valley Authority, U.S.Army Corps of  Engineers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and, USDA Forest Service and has become an annually anticipated event for local participation on publicly held lands across the Country.

The 2003 National Public Lands Day will include some 70,000 volunteers at more than 400 sites across the country. Presently, there are 16 work sites scheduled in Illinois including Miami Woods, Gompers Park Prairie, Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve, Spring Valley Nature Sanctuary, and Willow Springs in Cook County.

At its July 2003 Board Meeting, the Cook County Forest Preserve District Commissioners passed a resolution declaring September 20, 2003 National Public Lands Day in Cook County The resolution encourages Cook County residents, staff and Commissioners to participate in National Public Lands Day by volunteering at one of the designated sites or registering your own work site at the National Public Lands Day website at www.npld.com.

The Forest Preserve District of Cook County has a list of local work sites on its website at www.fpdcc.com.