Meetings, Activities & News

FREP Meeting Programs & Noon Networks

FREP programs are free and open to the public. Reservations are not required, unless there are space limitations.
A FREP Membership Meeting now held annually,  just one membership meeting a year on the 2nd Wednesday of January, .from 1-3 PM,
This Annual Meeting will include election of officers and a program.

FREP special activities include: the March Fox River Summit with our Wisconsin watershed partners; a  July is a FREP gathering/picnic and program; and a. December social gathering.

The FREP Executive Committee will meet throughout the year and their schedule will be publicized here and in the Downstream e-newsletter.
FREP Noon Networks held the 2nd Wednesday of the month from
Noon - 1:30 PM, at different locations in the Watershed. Most months, weather permitting, Noon Networks are outdoor field tours of different projects throughout the Watershed, and hosted by FREP members.

Noon Networks will now be held in February, April, May, June, August, September, October. and November.

FREP Membership Meeting Minutes are posted on our 
About Us Page

Our Next Activity:

FREP Noon Network      Wednesday, April 10, 2024    Noon to 1:30 PM
Meadowhawk Lodge at Hoover Forest Preserve, 11285 Fox Road Yorkville, IL 60560   
Hosted by Forest Preserve District of Kendall County

PROGRAM: Fishes of the Fox River, latest survey results, distribution, trends.
SPEAKER: Tristan Widloe – IDNR Region 2 streams biologist

About our speaker, Tristan Widloe

Tristan grew up in Shorewood, next to a tributary of the DuPage River. Between exploring the creek for years as a kid bringing home turtles, snakes and crayfish and dozens of family trips to northern Wisconsin, he has always been fascinated by aquatic ecosystems. After spending most of his twenties living and working in Chicago, Tristan had an early midlife crisis, quit his job in insurance accounting and went to grad school at Western Illinois University. There he obtained a master’s degree in biology with an emphasis in aquatic ecology, conducting his thesis research on the Mississippi River. Immediately after his time at WIU, Tristan worked as a biologist for a consulting firm in Aurora where he monitored fish populations in the Fox River for Fox Metro Water Reclamation District. After a couple of years in consulting, Tristan accepted a biologist position with IDNR Division of Fisheries in 2011. His first position with IDNR was with the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Program, monitoring and harvesting Invasive Carp from the Upper Illinois River and Chicago Area Waterway System. In 2018, he left the ANS Program and took his current position as the IDNR River and Streams Biologist for northeastern Illinois, working alongside his mentor, friend, and now semi-retired, Steve Pescitelli. Tristan lives in unincorporated Plano with his wife, Amanda, and their dog and cat, Fergus, and Ophelia.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources conducts fish surveys on the Fox River and tributaries on a five-year rotation, with the last such survey occurring in 2022. More than 41,000 fish of 76 species were collected from 41 sites. The average Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) score for sites on the Fox River was 41. IBI is a means of rating a river or stream segment based on the characteristics of the fish community present, scores range from 0 to 60; 60 indicating an excellent aquatic resource. Going back to 1996, IBI scores for the Fox River have been steady, with average scores ranging from 38-42. Fox River IBI scores have been historically higher in the lower, undammed portions of the river when compared to the upper river with its multitude of dams. Over the years, dams have been removed from various tributaries of the Fox River. Pre- and post-dam removal fish surveys have been conducted on Ferson, Brewster and Blackberry creeks. Increases in the total number of fish, species richness and IBI scores were observed across all dam removals. Increases in IBI were both biologically meaningful and statistically significant. Similar results were observed from two dam removal surveys in the Des Plaines River watershed. These findings illustrate the importance of dam removal to improve habitat, water quality and connectivity, thereby restoring natural stream conditions and allowing fish to move freely throughout the waterway.

Upcoming Activities:

Festival Website Link


                  April 17-23, 2024

Once again, FREP joins with our Fox Watershed Partners to sponsor this environmental film festival
This year we are sponsoring a virtual screening of the film  Carbon: The Unauthorized Biography

The virtual screening will be Tuesday, April 23, 2024 at 6:00 PM     
                                                                  Info and tickets at here: 
 CARBON LINK 

Wednesday, May 8, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Location: Meet at parking lot for Ferson Creek Fen Nature Preserve on east side of IL Route 31 just north of St Charles
Program:  
Ferson Creek Fen Nature Preserve Restoration
                     Recent large-scale effort to reclaim this natural area from cattail and brush invasion.
Speaker:   
Ryan Soloman, St Charles Park District

Wednesday, June 12, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Location: Meet at  street parking area just east of 1450 White Chapel Lane, Algonquin
Program:  
  Dixie Creek restoration highlights
Speaker:   
  Brad Andresen, Ecologist/Horticulturist, Village of Algonquin

July 2024     FREP Annual Picnic and Program

Watch for details and meeting location

Wednesday, August 14, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Watch for details and meeting location

Wednesday, September 11, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Watch for details and meeting location

Wednesday, October 9, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Watch for details and meeting location

Wednesday, November 13, 2024     FREP NOON Network        Noon - 1:30 PM

Watch for details and meeting location
Many of our past Noon Network & Membership Meeting presentations are available in pdf form HERE

FREP is happy to offer Professional Development Hour (PDH) certificates for our Noon Networks and Membership programs.

If you'd like to host a FREP Noon Network, or have a program topic/speaker to suggest, please let us know.
Email: info@foxriverecosystem.org

Other News of Interest Around the Watershed:

Thursday, February 29, 2024   Noon-1 PM
Lunch & Learn Webinar
Illinois State Water Survey's latest Fox River Water Quality Trends report 

Presented by Elias Getahun and Atticus Zavelle.
    RSVP LINK

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