8 v_ol_um_e_l ~.. Geology SUGAR-PECATONICA AREA ASSESSMENT . J~LLlNO~ '.'.'.'.'.'.'."'''~-§ =' §JEf OFPA1l.TIo4FNT (IF NATURAL RESOURCES SUGAR-PECATONICA AREA ASSESSMENT VOLUME 1: GEOLOGY Illinois Department ofNatural Resources Office of Scientific Research and Analysis State Geological Survey Division 6I5 East Peabody Drive Champaign, Illinois 61820 (217) 333-4747 1998 Rod R Blagojevich, Governor State ofIllinois Joel Brunsvold, Director Illinois Department ofNatural Resources One Natural Resources Way Springfield, IL 62702 300 Printed by the authority ofthe State ofnlinois Other CTAP Publications The Sugar-Pecatonica Rivers Basin: An Inventory ofthe Region's Resources - 22-page color booklet Descriptive inventories and 5-volume technical reports are also available for the following areas: Rock River Embarras River Cache River Upper Des Plaines River Mackinaw River Illinois River Bluffs Illinois Headwaters Spoon River Illinois Big Rivers Driftless Area Fox River Lower Rock River Kankakee River Sinkhole Plain Kishwaukee River Also available: Illinois Land Cover, An Atlas, plus CD-ROM Inventory ofEcologically Resource-Rich Areas in Illinois Annual Report 1997, Illinois EcoWatch Illinois Geographic Information System, CD-ROM ofdigital geospatial data All CTAP and Ecosystems Program documents are available from the DNR Clearinghouse at (217) 782-7498 or TDD (217) 782-9175. Selected publications are also available on the World Wide Web at http://dnr.state.il.us/ctap/ctaphome.htm, or http://dnr.state.il.us/c2000/manage/partner.htm, as well as on the EcoForum Bulletin Board at 1 (800) 528-5486 or (217) 782-8447. For more information about CTAP, call (217) 524-0500 or e-mail [email protected]; for information on the Ecosystems Program call (217) 782-7940 or e-mail at [email protected]. The Illinois Department ofNatural Resources does not discriminate based upon race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion or disability in its programs, services, activities and facilities. Ifyou believe that you have been discriminated against or ifyou wish additional information, please contact the Department at (217) 785-0067 or the U.S. Department ofthe Interior Office ofEqual Employment, Washington, D.C. 20240. About This Report The Sugar-Pecatonica Area Assessment examines an area in north central Illinois along the WisconsinlIllinois border. Because significant natural community and species diversity is found in one subbasin along the Sugar and Pecatonica rivers, it has been designated a state Resource Rich Area. 1 This report is part ofa series of reports on areas ofIllinois where a public-private partnership has been formed to protect natural resources. These assessments provide information on the natural and human resources ofthe areas as a basis for managing and improving their ecosystems. The determination of resource rich areas and development of ecosystem-based information and management programs in Illinois are the result ofthree processes - the Critical Trends Assessment Program, the Conservation Congress, and the Water Resources and Land Use Priorities Task Force. Background The Critical Trends Assessment Program (CTAP) documents changes in ecological conditions. In 1994, using existing information, the program provided a baseline of ecological conditions1 Three conclusions were drawn from the baseline investigation: 1. the emission and discharge of regulated pollutants over the past 20 years has declined, in some cases dramatically, 2. existing data suggest that the condition of natural ecosystems in Illinois is rapidly declining as a result offragmentation and continued stress, and 3. data designed to monitor compliance with environmental regulations or the status of individual species are not sufficient to assess ecosystem health statewide. Based on these findings, CTAP has begun to develop methods to systematically monitor ecological conditions and provide information for ecosystem-based management. Five components make up this effort: I. identify resource rich areas, 2. conduct regional assessments, 3. publish an atlas and inventory ofIllinois landcover, 4. train volunteers to collect ecological indicator data, and 5. develop an educational science curriculum which incorporates data collection I See Inventory ofResource Rich Areas in Illinois: An Evaluation ofEcological Resources. 2 See The Changing Illinois Environment: Critical Trends, sull1Ill3IY report and volumes 1-7. III At the same time that CTAP was publishing its baseline findings, the Illinois Conservation Congress and the Water Resources and Land Use Priorities Task Force were presenting their respective findings. These groups agreed with the CTAP conclusion that the state's ecosystems were declining. Better stewardship was needed, and they determined that a voluntary, incentive-based, grassroots approach would be the most appropriate, one that recognized the inter-relatedness ofeconomic development and natural resource protection and enhancement. From the three initiatives was born Conservation 2000, a six-year program to begin reversing ecosystem degradation, primarily through the Ecosystems Program, a cooperative process of public-private partnerships that are intended to merge natural resource stewardship with economic and recreational development. To achieve this goal, the program provides financial incentives and technical assistance to private landowners. The Rock River and Cache River were designated as the first Ecosystem Partnership areas. At the same time, CTAP identified 30 Resource Rich Areas (RRAs) throughout the state. In RRAs and other areas where Ecosystem Partnerships have been formed, CTAP is providing an assessment ofthe area, drawing from ecological and socio-economic databases to give an overview ofthe region's resources - geologic, edaphic, hydrologic, biotic, and socio­ economic. Although several ofthe analyses are somewhat restricted by spatial and/or temporal limitations ofthe data, they help to identify information gaps and additional opportunities and constraints to establishing long-term monitoring programs in the partnership areas. The Sugar-Pecatonica Area Assessment The Sugar-Pecatonica Area Assessment encompasses approximately 796.3 square miles (509,675 acres) in north central Illinois along the Wisconsin/Illinois border. The area includes virtually all of Stephenson County, the northwestern half of Winnebago County, and very small portions ofCarroll, J0 Daviess, and Ogle counties. There are 21 subbasins along the Sugar and Pecatonica rivers, ofwhich one has been designated a "Resource Rich Area" because it contains significant natural community diversity. The Sugar-Pecatonica Rivers Ecosystem Partnership was subsequently formed around this core area ofhigh quality ecological resources. This assessment is comprised offive volumes. In Volume 1, Geology discusses the geology, soils, and minerals in the assessment area. Volume 2, Water Resources, discusses the surface and groundwater resources and Volume 3, Living Resources, describes the natural vegetation communities and the fauna of the region. Volume 4 contains three parts: Part I, Socio-Economic Profile, discusses the demographics, IV t 1 60.111 1:2700000 ·"""""""""""'iiiiiiiiiiiiiii=""""""""""'"iiiiiiiiii....'oo..­ Dr.lnaae IMline from 1:24000 acal. WlI1.r.hed boundarle••• deline-ted by the U.s.O.8. Wat.r R••Duroll8 Dlvillion. Figure 2. Major drainage basins of Illinois and location of the Sugar-Pecatonica Assessment Area Apple :; River ~ StoektODg 81 ' "'I ~I ;! < (' O·q:oil'! ~ARROLL :~ -----.,WINNEBAGO CO. co. I ~Lake r1 // ",'Carroll e'. / "",-r'--"~\vlf' ,. ----- I Fot;{;~ton [j ~W~ &tJ ~ IiLanark Scale 1:348480 o 25 lCiknnell:rs () 15 Miles I N Subbasins in the Sugar-Pecatonica Assessment Area. Subbasin boundaries depicted are those I determined by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. infrastructure, and economy ofthe area, focusing on the two counties with the greatest amount ofland in the area - Stephenson and Winnebago; Part II, Environmental Quality, discusses air and water quality, and hazardous and toxic waste generation and management in the area; and Part III, Archaeological Resources, identifies and assesses the archaeological sites known in the area. Volume 5, Early Accounts ofthe Ecology of the Sugar-Pecatonica Area, describes the ecology ofthe area as recorded by historical writings of explorers, pioneers, early visitors and early historians. VII Contributors Introduction: Influence ofGeology and Soil. .. MyrnaM.Killey on Ecosystem Development and William W. Shilts Part 1 : The Natural Geologic Setting BedrockGeology . .................. C.PiusWeibel Glacial and Surficial Geology ................. MyrnaM. Killey with contributions by Lisa R. Smith and James C. Hester Modern Soils and the Landscape-Influences on Habitat. Michael L. Barnhardt and Agriculture with contributions by Lisa R. Smith and James C. Hester Landscape Features and Natural Areas with Geologic Features . Myrna M. Killey of Interest with contributions by Lisa R. Smith and James C. Hester LandCoverInventory. .......................... Donald E. Luman with contributions by Lisa R. Smith and James C. Hester Part 2 : Geology and Society Mineral Resources . .......................... VijuIpe with contributions by Lisa R. Smith and James C. Hester AquiferDelineation Ross D. Brower and RobertC. Vaiden Potential for Geologic Hazards Daniel C. Barnstable Potential for Contamination ofGroundwater Resources . Donald A. Keefer with contributions byLisaR..Smith and James