The Will County Forest Preserve District has applied three times in two years for a type of permit required before undertaking work that might harm endangered species or their habitats.
The most recent application, known as an incidental take authorization, is pending with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll harm that species,” said Floyd Catchpole, a retired ecologist who has worked on endangered species recovery. “But you can proceed to take whatever action it is that you want to take, with a limit of killing up to whatever number of individuals that your permit allows.”
Businesses and government entities must apply for incidental take authorizations when undertaking certain projects, but it is not common for forest preserve districts to apply.
Only seven of the 318 permit applications received by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources since 2000 have been submitted by county forest preserve districts, according to records available online. Of those, only the Will County Forest Preserve District has submitted more than one.
The Forest Preserve District said in a statement the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is responsible for determining when an incidental take authorization is required.
“(It) should not be viewed as inherently negative,” the statement said. “It reflects the District’s due diligence and close coordination with IDNR, ensuring compliance with state law and protection of endangered and threatened species.”
The authorization process provides structured review, additional oversight and requires conservation measures tailored to the project, often with project modifications, enhanced habitat protections or mitigation measures designed to benefit the species, the statement said.
Applicants are required to include mitigation measures to balance the harm potentially done to endangered species.
The most recent permit application, filed in December, relates to the replacement of a dock on Snapper Pond in the Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve outside Crete. The existing dock is planned to be replaced with a much larger structure.
The planned project could endanger two species: Kirtland’s snake, which is a state threatened species, and Blanding’s turtle, which is a state endangered species. The application states that the loss of up to three snakes and up to one turtle is anticipated.
Another recent application, approved Tuesday, also potentially endangers Blanding’s turtle. That project is intended to build out infrastructure on Isle a la Cache in Romeoville.
Blanding’s turtle is listed as an endangered species on the international Red List, though it has no federal status in the United States. A focused recovery program for the species has been underway in Lake County since 2009.
The third recent Will County permit application, approved in January 2025, also pertains to Kirtland’s snake, again anticipating the loss of up to three snakes. In that project, the Forest Preserve plans to construct a trail connecting Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve and the Plum Valley Forest Preserve.
“All extinction is local,” said Catchpole. “Kirtland’s snake is a Midwestern species. Illinois is pretty much in the heartland of the Kirtland’s snake.”
Kirtland’s snake is mostly found in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, as well as smaller parts of Missouri, Michigan, Tennessee and Kentucky. It is considered to be threatened or endangered in a majority of the states it is found in.
“If we didn’t have the Will County Forest Preserve, hell, the Kirtland’s snake would probably be gone from the county,” Catchpole said. “Goodenow Grove would be a subdivision, and there would be no Kirtland’s snakes in Will County, end of story.”
elewis@chicagotribune.com