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The Village of Algonquin, IL
Welcome to the website for the Village of Algonquin!
Water Resources Management
Projects | Stormwater Ordinance | Park & Wetland Acquisition | Water Conservation | NPDES
Woods Creek Watershed Plan & Recreation Projects
The Village of Algonquin has created a Woods Creek Watershed Protection Plan as part of a United States Environmental Protection Agency Grant. The initiative includes a wetland conservation plan, assessment and monitoring of the ecological integrity of the wetlands, public education, corridor protection, and much more. Stop by Village Hall to view a map of Woods Creek.
The Woods Creek Watershed in the Village of Algonquin includes the entire area east of Square Barn Road, south of Algonquin Road, west of Randall Road, and north of Huntley Road. It contains Woods Creek, wetlands and rare fens, floodplain and extensive native plant and animal communities.
The preservation of natural resources, and the watershed in particular, is of great importance and priority to the Village of Algonquin. The Woods Creek Watershed is one of many watersheds that create the entire Fox River watershed. It is therefore critical to protect the "smaller" systems that combine to encompass the whole system.
Some of the benefits to preserving natural areas for current and future residents of Algonquin include:
- Natural environments are pleasing to our senses
- Provides a safe and healthy refuge for wildlife habitat
- Creates a unique natural environment for wildlife and plant viewing
- Provides educational resources and opportunities
- Enables both active and passive recreational spaces
- Controls soil erosion and flooding
- Adds significant value to property
- Improves air and water quality
- Enhances the overall quality of life
What YOU can do to help:
Plan a trip to visit and enjoy natural landscapes that surround Woods Creek! It is a great time to educate family and friends on how priceless this community natural resource truly is. Enjoy!
For your review, a copy of the full Woods Creek Watershed Plan is located at the Algonquin Area Public Library and in the Community Development Department at Village Hall. Or, click on the link at the bottowm of the page to download an online copy of the plan.
Very few pollutants ever disappear from the urban landscape. These pollutants are merely transferred from one place to another - whether from air to land, land to surface water, or from soil to groundwater. Stormwater discharges are generated by runoff from land and impervious areas such as paved streets, parking lots, and building rooftops during rainfall and snow events that often contain pollutants in quantities that could adversely affect water quality. It is therefore critical that communities regulate stormwater through best management practices.
The Village of Algonquin strongly advocates and promotes stormwater management and regulates stormwater discharge by continuously enforcing the creation and maintenance of wet-bottom detention basins, wetland protection, natural buffering techniques, and sump pump discharge control. These techniques allow stormwater to be filtered through plants, purifying the water before it reaches the creek or river. Also, wet-bottom detention basins look nicer and provide habitat for wildlife. These features also allow for water to infiltrate back into the ground.
The Village has adopted Kane County's Stormwater Management ordinance, which promotes environmentally sensitive design.
What YOU can do to help:
To learn more on how you can help in your neighborhood and understand how chemicals (pesticides/fertilizers) placed on lawns can affect stormwater management, please contact the Public Works Department at 847-658-2700. Or, for further online information, please open the "Living With Wetlands" brochure at the bottom of this page, which illustrates the need to keep water resources pure and clean for everyone's enjoyment - including natural habitats we live within in the Village of Algonquin.
The Village of Algonquin is committed to providing high-quality recreational areas, including the restoration, creation and protection of wetland areas.
Algonquin has a vast array of parks ranging from small neighborhood parks to large-scale community parks that contain a variety of facilities and equipment including playgrounds, baseball fields, tennis courts, soccer fields, ice rinks, basketball courts, trails, exercise stations, picnic areas, and sand volleyball courts. To view a complete listing of all current village parks and recreation areas, please check out the Public Works Department page.
In addition, the Village continues to acquire and maintain wetlands through developer donations. Some of our wetland natural areas include:
Arbor Hills Nature Preserve
Algonquin Lakes Park and Lakes
Falcon Ridge Nature Preserve
Kelliher Park (includes wetlands)
High Hill Park and Nature Preserve
James B. Wood Park
Par Drive Wetlands
Woods Creek Watershed
Please view the Parks, Trails, and Open Space Plan below for more information on all the natural areas within the Village.
What can YOU do to help:
All residents and visitors to the Village of Algonquin are welcome to visit and enjoy all public recreational areas. Please keep in mind; it is for your safety and the health of the environment, that respect and care is used when enjoying these areas and facilities. The Village of Algonquin has created an informative brochure for all residents and visitors. You can view the "Living With Wetlands" brochure at the bottom of this page.
The water system status informs residents and businesses about outside watering restrictions. To check water system status, see signs posted on main streets in the Village, call Village Hall (847) 658-2700, or look on the Village's website. Also contact the Village for more information on the water conservation program, and to find out about penalties for violating the requirements stated below.
CONSERVATION Green signs indicate outside water use is permitted except for watering landscaping and lawns, which is prohibited between the hours of 9:00 am and 6:00 pm.
EVEN/ODD Yellow signs indicate even/odd days for watering before 9:00 am and after 6:00 pm. Even addresses may water on even calendar days and odd addresses may water on odd calendar days.
ORANGE Orange signs indicate even/odd days for watering only between 6:00am-9:00am. Even addresses may water on even calendar days and odd addresses may water on odd calendar days between 6:00am-9:00am.
RESTRICTED Red signs indicate no outside water use allowed at any time.
Let's work together to conserve water in the Village!
What YOU can do to help:
More and more communities across the U.S. are adopting water conservation ordinances as a means to preserve and protect drinking water. What can YOU do to help aid in water conservation?
- Set your lawn mower higher to avoid cutting grass too short, as higher grass lengths require less watering and withstand heat more efficiently.
- Water lawns a maximum of once every three days. Over watering wastes water and is harmful to lawns. When watering during a dry spell, we encourage the use of sprinklers that are able to throw large droplets of water and are less susceptible to the evaporative effects of wind and the sun.
- Establish mulch beds around all trees and shrubs to help retain moisture and insulate plants from both extreme hot and cold conditions.
- Use a broom or blower to clean sidewalks and driveways instead of a hose.
- Try the "xeriscape[1]" approach to landscaping. These plants and shrub species require very little water, but are just as beautiful and help to conserve the village's water supply.
NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Phase II
Water pollution degrades surface waters making them unsafe for drinking, fishing, swimming, and other activities. In 1972, amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (now known as the Clean Water Act) prohibited the discharge of any pollutant to navigable waters of the United States from a point source unless the discharge is authorized by a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. The NPDES permit program controls water pollution by regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States.
Efforts to continue to improve water quality under the NPDES Phase I program have been successful and Phase II has been enforced since 1999. Phase II of the stormwater program covers small construction activities that disturb between 1 and 5 acres. The Village of Algonquin is actively involved with the NPDES Phase II program and routinely regulates stormwater management by requiring permits for all stormwater discharge in the area.
The Environmental Protection Agency believes, as does the Village of Algonquin, that an informed and knowledgeable community is critical to the success of a stormwater management program and helps ensure greater support and greater compliance for the program. As a NPDES permit participant and member, the Village of Algonquin has created stormwater brochures and fact sheets for residents of the Village of Algonquin, and created alternative information sources such as this website, and wetland/trail signage.
Individual homes that are connected to a municipal system, use a septic system, or do not have a surface discharge do not need an NPDES permit; however, industrial, municipal, and other facilities must obtain permits if their discharges go directly to surface waters.
What YOU can do to help:
A large body of information is available to help interested citizens understand how the NPDES permit program helps to achieve the Nation's clean water goals. If you would like further information, please click here to view the EPA's Water Permitting 101 guidelines on water resource conservation and protection. Call the Public Works Department at 847-658-2700 for more information on the NPDES requirements and the Village compliance.
[1] Information on xeriscape from the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
