Illinois' Endangered Species Board has fallen victim to the state's budget woes. The Rauner Administration says funding for staff has been eliminated completely.
A spokesman declined to comment further except to say the work will continue, with support from existing personnel.
It leaves board member Lenore Beyer-Clow, who works with the Open Lands organization, with "grave concerns" about future conservation efforts. She says the research involved requires expertise. Beyer-Clow says she realizes that money is tight, but she says protecting threatened plants and animals plays an important role.
“Each species is part of a larger ecosystem and we’re all part of that ecosystem as well. So when you begin to see certain things impact different plants, it goes towards bigger issues. It goes towards water quality, it goes towards concerns about habitat.”
The state spent about $240,000 on the Endangered Species Board last year, including money for a full time director.
