12 THE A’U DU 'BSOUNG (BOUT bala 
Report on the Natural Resources Council Meeting 
By Mrs. NoRMAN M. TESTER 
THE 8TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE of the Natural Resources Council of Illinois 
was held October 20, 21, 22 at Hotel Fairmont, Collinsville. Dr. Richard H. 
Rodrian was general chairman of the meeting. 
William T. Lodge, Director of the Illinois Department of Conservation, 
spoke at the Friday evening session. Director Lodge said that his greatest 
problem is the serious shortage of operating funds. In 12 years, Illinois has 
spent $600,000 annually for waterfowl restoration projects. Multiple-pur- 
pose areas serve waterfowl and are also used for fishing and boating. He 
mentioned a program for building 1,500 to 2,000 campsites in State Parks 
in the next three years. Director Lodge left conference delegates with some 
sobering information: ‘“Tllinois has the lowest number of acres of park land 
per capita in the U.S.A. We’d need 156,000 acres of parks to equal Indiana; 
500,000 acres to compare to Wisconsin, Michigan, or Minnesota.” 
The Saturday morning panel discussion centered around the subject of 
flood control. Speakers were Anton Sajovetz, Madison County Soil Conser- 
vation District; Paul V. Hudelson, Illinois Department of Agriculture; and 
Thomas F. Mather, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Each told of the role 
his department plays in the prevention of loss of soil and flood control. 
Elton Fawks and Jane Tester acted as co-chairmen for the afternoon 
session on insecticides, pesticides and the public interest. Elton Fawks dis- 
cussed House Bill 993 (voted down by the Illinois Senate). The bill would 
have created a commission to study the pesticide problem. Dr. George Decker, 
chief entomologist of the Illinois Natural History Survey, spoke on the 
pesticide-wildlife relationship. He stated that: ‘‘Pesticides are essential to 
efficient production in agriculture and there are no pesticides in use today 
that cannot be used with safety. It is the abuse or misuse of pesticides and 
not the legitimate use that has resulted in undesirable side effects.” 
Orchard owner Les Stone of Hampton, Illinois, told of his first-hand ex- 
periences with agricultural poisons and cautioned that they are dangerous 
unless used with care. He mentioned that he had discontinued the use of 
some chemicals because of toxicity. A question-and-answer period followed. 
Paul Simon, Representative in the Illinois State Legislature, was the din- 
ner speaker. Mr. Simon gave conference delegates practical advice about 
enactment of proposed legislation. “‘Write letters to the editors stating why 
you are for or against a certain issue. Become active in your political party. 
Coffee hours for legislators with question-and-answer periods are valuable. 
Contact your legislators personally or by letter.’”’ Mr. Simon felt that form 
letters are of little value. 
The Sunday morning program started with an early nature hike through 
Cahokia State Park. The trip was led by Lucas Wrischnik of Collinsville. 
Wiliam Garrigan, Belvidere, was chairman of the Sunday morning club 
session. Raymond Mostek spoke on the problem of billboard blight. J. W. 
Galbreath talked about recent activities of the Prairie Chicken Foundation. 
The following officers were elected for the coming year: Chairman: Vernon 
Greening, Springfield; Vice-chairman: William Garrigan, Belvidere; Corre- 
sponding Secretary: Miss Emma Brittain, East St. Louis; Recording Secre- 
tary: Mrs. Arthur Jens, Glen Ellyn; Treasurer: Miss Katie Hamrick, 
Champaign. 
2029 Oxford St., Rockford, Ill. 
