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Kane‑DuPage Soil and Water Conservation District launches LISA committee, plans cover‑crop events and soil‑health outreach
Summary
District staff said the first Kane LISA committee meeting is set for May 29 to update the Land Evaluation and Site Assessment score; the district also announced cover‑crop demonstrations, a women‑in‑ag program and soil health assessment outreach for farmers.
Representatives of the Kane‑DuPage Soil and Water Conservation District told the Kane County Agriculture Committee on May 22 that they have scheduled the first LISA (Land Evaluation and Site Assessment) committee meeting for May 29 and are expanding local farmer outreach with cover‑crop demonstrations and a women‑in‑ag series.
Kat (last name not specified), administrative coordinator at the district, described upcoming programming that includes a cover‑crop field day with a proposed drone seeding demonstration to address northern Illinois’ shortened establishment windows, planned partnership with University of Illinois Extension and Farm Bureau, and a women‑in‑ag speaker series looking for small‑operation presenters. The district said it is offering a soil‑health assessment program to farmers and is meeting with the Kane County Forest Preserve about on‑the‑ground coordination.
Isabella Borzica, senior resource analyst, said she is working with county staff and technical team members to convene the Kane LISA committee and update the LISA score, which was last updated (per her remarks) in February 2004. She explained that the LISA score combines a land evaluation (soil factors, roughly one‑third of the score) and a site assessment that accounts for proximity to economic factors and certain zoning types; she said the site assessment component can lower a parcel’s score when it is close to certain business or residential zoning and that the committee will review whether the scoring should be revised to prioritize cropland viability regardless of location.
Committee members asked about comparing Kane County’s LISA approach with other counties; staff said the committee will review other counties’ practices and return recommendations. The district asked to coordinate further with the Illinois Farm Bureau urban agriculture manager about urban‑ag programming and to recruit speakers and local partners for upcoming events.
No county actions were taken during the presentations; staff indicated further work and committee discussion will follow the May 29 LISA committee meeting.
