connecting to the environment:  Preserving Unique Natural Resources
Open space and natural areas have been protected throughout the Chicago metropolitan area through far-sighted actions, creating a natural infrastructure which supports the region's population and businesses.   
New development needs to take into account its impact on the environment. Development on the region's edges requires that sewer and water utilities be extended into sparsely populated areas. This increases the cost per unit of providing and using water and sewer utilities. Meanwhile, utilities in older urban areas face continuing maintenance needs and high costs.   
Best management practices are being applied in several   
sites in the region to overcome soil erosion and sedimentation,   
implementing natural systems to enhance stormwater manage-ment and water quality. For example, natural drainage   
measures, such as using native prairie and wetland plantings,   
are more effective in reducing the runoff rate and preventing flooding than conventional systems, and are also more attractive and less expensive to construct and maintain. 		   in Grayslake combines traditional street layouts, clustered housing,  a community-supported farm and 160 acres of restored wetlands and prairies. Natural wetlands at Prairie Crossing have proven to be a cost-efficient means to prevent flooding by absorbing stormwater runoff.   
   
  purchased by Corlands, an affiliate of Openlands Project, opened in the Summer of 1997 to immediate success. It connects the south suburban communities of Chicago Heights, Matteson and Frankfurt. Nearby residential developments are marketing the trail as a selling point to prospective homebuyers.  
 

    
has been protected by  Lake Forest Open Lands.  By negotiating with private   
developers and homeowners,  the organization has  protected some of the   
most expensive real estate  in the region by linking it  to limited development. 
   
 		 Guiding principles  
for connecting to the environment  

   Preserve open space which reduces stormwater runoff and provides additional filtering of treated wastewater.   

   Preserve significant natural features such as rivers, wetlands and forests;   

   Maintain biodiversity by protecting large tracts of land through land banking and siting, rather than isolated pockets for each development; and   

   Encourage more compact development around existing sewer and water utilities