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Resolution Approving a Proposal for Rapid Environmental DNA Screening for Blanding’s Turtles
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WHEREAS, Blanding’s turtles are a long-lived semi-aquatic turtle that is listed as endangered in Illinois; and
WHEREAS, the Forest Preserve District of Kane County actively surveys for turtle populations as a means to support their conservation through a labor-intensive process of trapping; and
WHEREAS, new advances in science have created efficient and rapid methods to test for the presence of species in their environments through the collection of environmental DNA samples; and
WHEREAS, the District has worked with the University of Illinois to receive a proposal for the sampling of eDNA for Blanding’s turtles at a total of 17 sites at a cost of $67,320 to further the conservation of the species and better prioritize sites for traditional trapping.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Commissioners of the Forest Preserve District of Kane County, Kane County, Illinois, that the proposal for eDNA sampling for Blanding’s turtle presence at 17 locations within Kane County at a cost of $67,320 is hereby accepted and approved.
APPROVED AND PASSED on this 10th day of November, 2026.
___________________________ ____________________________
Bill Lenert Mohammad Iqbal
President, Kane Forest Preserve Secretary, Kane Forest Preserve
Kane County, Illinois Kane County, Illinois