Our Mission
The mission of the Lincoln Heritage RC&D is to provide leadership in resource management and economic growth of the citizens, agencies,and organizations who are already working hard to improve the quality of life in east central Illinois.
Our Purpose
The Lincoln Heritage RC&D council's purpose is to pursue funding for projects not covered by other sources, help planning groups solve common problems, and help germinate new ideas that will provide expanded opportunities for rural residents. Our goal is to make better use of natural resources to improve the economic base of the citizens in the six-county area as well as to preserve those resources for future generations. We seek to accomplish this goal by working with those who are already deeply invested in the understanding of the region's problems and opportunities, so that efforts are optimized, rather than duplicated. The Lincoln Heritage RC&D Council seeks to fill a niche of service to rural communities and their under-served citizens.
Our Plan of Action
The Council Plan of Action includes the following objectives:
1) The Lincoln Heritage RC&D will coordinate with SWCDs and other agencies to inform landowners of available agriculture incentives to reduce erosion and sedimentation.
2) Provide management assistance to urban and rural communities in flood control, maintenance of agricultural drainage, water supplies for fire protection in rural communities and nutrient management.
3) Promote community development through agritourism, transportation, infrastructure improvements, loans and increased agriculture diversity.
4) Promote markets for recycled products, sponsor household hazardous waste recycle days, and solid waste removal in the rural communities.
5) Promote participation in various programs for establishing wildfire habitat and for implementing practices which reduce erosion and water pollution.
1) The Lincoln Heritage RC&D will coordinate with SWCDs and other agencies to inform landowners of available agriculture incentives to reduce erosion and sedimentation.
2) Provide management assistance to urban and rural communities in flood control, maintenance of agricultural drainage, water supplies for fire protection in rural communities and nutrient management.
3) Promote community development through agritourism, transportation, infrastructure improvements, loans and increased agriculture diversity.
4) Promote markets for recycled products, sponsor household hazardous waste recycle days, and solid waste removal in the rural communities.
5) Promote participation in various programs for establishing wildfire habitat and for implementing practices which reduce erosion and water pollution.
History of RC&Ds
Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) is a program of the United States Department of Agriculture, created by the provision of the Food and Agriculture Act of 1962. Although, the Secretary of Agriculture gave the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) the responsibility for administering the RC&D Program, the program is based on the premise that local citizens can develop and carry out an action oriented plan for social, economic and environmental enrichment of their communities. RC&D regions are structured in a way that retains the value of grassroots involvement in making decisions and taking action to accomplish goals that enhance the quality of life within communities it serves. It is this value of local people and local decision-making power that makes the program so unique and valuable.
In 1964, ten pilot RC&D areas were created. Shawnee RC&D in Southern Illinois was one of the first created in the nation. Since that time there have been 348 RC&D areas created nationwide. The RC&D program is based on a number of concepts that make it a unique program: 1) Valuing public/private partnership to make the best use of limited resources, 2) Grassroots involvement in decision making, 3) Leveraging limited state and federal with private funds to accomplish goals, and 4) Balancing rural economic development and natural resource protection. Bringing USDA agencies together to focus on the same problems and opportunities.
Who we are...
Abraham Lincoln frequented the six counties during his law career and built a log home south of Charleston, Illinois in Coles County. The citizens of these counties are hardworking individuals who seek to cooperate to solve common problems. Thus the name "Lincoln Heritage" was chosen to symbolize the spirit of the people and to recognize its history.
Lincoln Heritage RC&D NFP
Area Profile
The Lincoln Heritage Resource Conservation and Development Area is located in East-Central Illinois and is comprised of Champaign, Coles, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, and Vermilion Counties. The region is strongly influenced by the most recent glaciations. Northern Cumberland County marks the sourthern extent of morains from the Wisconsin glacial episode (IDNR, 1996). Glacial morains form watershed boundaries for the Embarras, Kaskaskia, Sangamon, Vermilion, and Little Vermilion Rivers, as well as tributaries to the Wabash and Iroquois Rivers. Population centers are located along the morains including Urbana-Champaign in Champaign County, Danville and Hoopeston in Vermilion County, Tuscola in Douglas County, and Paris in Edgar County. Toledo and Greenup, population centers in Cumberland County, are south of the glacial influence. Most importantly, flat, fertile, farmland is a legacy of the glaciers, driving the economy of much of the area.
Approximately three-quarters of the area is agricultural, with corn and soybeans being the major crops. Small grains and livestock are important in some parts of the six-county area. Significant forested area can be found in Vermilion, Edgar, Coles, and Cumberland Counties. Urban areas make up less than 2% of the RC&D area. In addition to agriculture, major employment sectors include educational services (such as provided by the Unversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Eastern Illinois University at Charleston, and numerous area community colleges), health care and professional services, retail trade, and manufacturing.
