Indiana Nature News and Events

News

We are currently tracking some legislative activity, which could eventually impact the quality of Indiana’s waterways and riparian zones. Earlier this year, the Indiana State Legislature passed Senate Bill 85, which created the Drainage Task Force, consisting of six members of the Senate, six members of the House of Representatives, and seven other individuals. The act instructs the Drainage Task Force to,

1. Review the responsibilities of landowners and state and local authorities under current laws relating to the drainage of land, including,
2. 1. Laws concerning agricultural drainage
   2. Regulation of wetlands that are subject to federal jurisdiction
   3. Regulation of wetlands that are subject to state jurisdiction
   4. Flood control laws
3. Determine
1. If drainage authority is shifting from county drainage boards to state agencies
2. The extent to which the draining of agricultural land is yielding to conservation and pollution objectives
3. Whether the cost and delays of regulatory requirements are too great
4. Whether floodway permit requirements should apply to the installation of fences and the removal of tree stumps
4. Determine whether Indiana’s drainage laws favor state authority over local authority as compared to neighboring states

The act requires the Drainage Task Force to submit a full report, including determinations and recommendations, no later than December 1, 2023.

The complete text of the act is here

The Drainage Task Force met for the first time on November 21, 2022. A significant amount of time, if not the majority, was allocated to special interests who advocated for reduced state regulations concerning oversight of agricultural drainage.

The minutes of that meeting are here

You can also watch a video recording of it here

After witnessing the 2021 deregulation of many of the state’s wetlands with the passage of SB389, Indiana Nature LLC feels it is imperative that environmentally-minded Hoosiers,

1. Stay informed on the process of the Drainage Task Force.
2. Attend their open meetings live or virtually and utilize public commenting opportunities to remind the task force that the citizens of Indiana value the protection of our waterways and riparian zones.
3. Share this information with other like-minded people.

The next meeting of the Drainage Task Force is Wednesday, December 21, at 12:00 pm EST (11:00 am CST). The link to the page that will contain the agenda and the link to the live meeting is here

Upcoming Events

Recent Appearances and Events

2023

• April
• Indiana Native Plant Society Central Chapter — Botanical Time Bombs: A Historical Look at the Accidental and Intentional Introductions of Indiana’s Invasive Plants (lecture)> (webinar)
• March
• Indiana Land Protection Alliance — Botanical Time Bombs: A Historical Look at the Accidental and Intentional Introductions of Indiana’s Invasive Plants (lecture)> (webinar)
• Pollinator Partnership — International Pollinator Certification Training: Lepidoptera (webinar)

• January
• Shirley Heinze Land Trust — First Day Hike at Lydick Bog (hike)
• Wild Ones South Bend Chapter — Where the Buffalos Roamed: Indiana Prairies Past and Present (lecture)

2022

• October
• Friends of the Indiana Dunes/Indiana Master Naturalist Program — Trees of Northern Indiana (lecture and ecology hike)

• September
• Indiana Dunes Outdoor Festival in collaboration with the Indiana Dunes National Park and Shirley Heinze Land Trust — Guided tours of John Merle Coulter Nature Preserve and West Beach (hike)
• Northwest Indiana Green Drinks — Lydick Bog: The Discovering and Making of a Nature Preserve (lecture)

• August
• St. Joe Valley Master Gardeners — Lydick Bog History and Ecology (hike)
• Shirley Heinze Land Trust — Lydick Bog History and Ecology (hike)

• July
• International Friendship Gardens — Eco Fest (family insect identification)
• Shirley Heinze Land Trust — Lydick Bog History and Ecology (hike)

• May
• The Mike Nowak Show with Peggy Malecki — “How to Discover a Wild Area in the 21st Century” (hike accompanied by 90-minute interview)
• Potawatomi Audubon Society — A Journey “IN Nature:” Can a Grassroots Environmental Movement Help to Improve Indiana’s Ecological Literacy? (lecture)
• Friends of the Indiana Dunes/Indiana Master Naturalist Program — IMN botany curriculum focusing on spring wildflowers (lecture and hike)

• April
• Indiana Dunes National Park in conjunction with the Friends of the Indiana Dunes native plant sale — native plant lecture at the Dorothy Buell Visitor’s Center
• Back the Bend (a city-wide partnership between the City of South Bend and the University of Notre Dame) — Invasive plant removal at Woodlawn Park.
• Wild Ones Gibson Woods Chapter 38 — Spring Woodland Wildflowers of the Lower Lake Michigan Region: History, Folklore, and Physiology (lecture).

• March
• St. Joseph County Area Plan Commission — provided revisions to definitions of “rank vegetation” as used in the county weed ordinance
• Shirley Heinze Land Trust — Lydick Bog History and Ecology (hike)

• February
• Michiana Master Gardener’s 3rd Annual Garden Expo at the Northern Indiana Event Center — Spring Wildflowers (lecture).
• Wild Ones South Bend Chapter — Spring Woodland Wildflowers of the Lower Lake Michigan Region: History, Folklore, and Physiology (lecture)

2021

• October
• Indiana Nature LLC and Johnson County Park’s Educational Workshop: Native Trees for Hoosier Landscapes — “Native Trees for Indiana Landscapes’ and “Plant for a Better Tomorrow” (lectures)
• Friends of the Indiana Dunes/Indiana Master Naturalist Program — Trees of Northern Indiana (lecture and hike)
• Wild Ones South Bend Chapter — Lydick Bog Nature Preserve (hike)

• September
• Indiana Dunes National Park’s Indiana Dunes Outdoor Festival — Great Marsh Trail ecology hike
• Indiana University South Bend Faculty day of service — Invasive species removal at Woodlawn Park and Pinhook Park (lecture)

• July
  • Potato Creek State Park — Lepidoptera Day! (Butterfly lecture, hike, and nighttime mothing event)
  • Zionsville Parks — Nature 101 on Moths (virtual lecture)

• June
  • Porter County Master Gardener’s Association — Where the Buffalo Roamed: The History and Ecology of Indiana’s Prairies
  • Save the Dunes — Lepidoptera Pollinators (virtual lecture to support National Pollinator Week)

• May
  • Dunes Learning Center — Middle school citizen science program on Lepidoptera
  • Dig the Dunes — Annual Botany Hike at Warren Dunes State Park