TNC Launches Freshwater Resilience Analysis

Board of Trustees William M. Miller, PhD Chair Mamadou-Abou Sarr Vice Chair Rebecca Gerchenson Treasurer Yvonne Bruce Luis Gutierrez Kunal Kapoor Ronald S. Levin Lydia Link Ian McCutcheon Brad McMillan Pin Ni Ann Suker Potter Shari Rogge-Fidler Alison Taylor Matthew Walker Donald J. Wuebbles, PhD

Trustees Emeriti Philip D. Block IV Lynne Dinzole Lynn B. Donaldson Peter H. Fenner Christopher D. Gould Elisha Gray Ted Haffner Constance T. Keller Ethan Meers Richard E. Sparks, PhD David L. Thomas, PhD M. Jay Trees

Life Trustees Harry Drucker Wendy J. Paulson Brenda Shapiro Nancy Hamill Winter

State Director Michelle Carr

International Headquarters Arlington, Virginia 703-841-5300

The Nature Conservancy is a private, nonprofit 501(c)(3) international membership organization. Its mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends.

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Two of the world’s greatest freshwater treasures—the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River—sit in the cradle of America’s heartland. For millennia, they have been connected to tributary rivers and streams that wind their way through the landscape, providing essential habitat to a wide range of species. Today, these freshwater environments are North America’s most imperiled ecosystems.

“Reduced water quality in our rivers and lakes is an ongoing concern,” says Dr. Maria Lemke, the Illinois chapter’s director of science. “Water quality impairments are likely to become worse as climate change increases the intensity of rain events. This will put added stress on fish and other aquatic life.”

These challenges are further compounded by a system of 54,000 dams that fragment the region’s streams. But, despite that fragmentation, many Midwestern streams are still well connected—and that provides an opportunity for the future.

“These connected systems can be referred to as ‘resilient stream networks’ because they offer aquatic life the opportunity to move freely to a wide range of habitats as needed,” says Dr. Lemke. “This facilitates adaptation in the face of climate change and other environmental stressors.”

Using this lens, the Illinois chapter participated in a project led by TNC’s Center for Resilient Conservation Science to assess the characteristics of all streams in the Mississippi and Great Lakes basins and identify which are resilient stream networks. If protected, restored or better managed, these networks have a chance to sustain the nation’s aquatic diversity and ecosystem benefits under a changing climate.

“This mapping tool can help us identify and assess how conservation efforts can protect and increase resilient systems,” says Dr. Lemke. She participated on the regional steering committee for this effort, along with Dr. Richard Sparks, who is a member of the chapter’s Science Advisory Committee.

This mapping process is also being used to identify resilient stream networks in the Eastern and Western parts of the country.

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