Deer Grove Forest Preserve, Palatine

As part of a number of Earth Day activities in April, the Chicago Department of Aviation encourages travelers to visit the new Wetlands exhibit opening on Monday, April 23, 2012, at O'Hare International Airport, Terminal 2, near the Kids On The Fly play area. Wetlands restoration projects play a significant role in fostering sustainable land use in urban settings by creating a balance of developed and open space. The exhibit follows a highly successful 2012 Earth Day Celebration at Deer Grove Forest Preserve in Palatine on Saturday, April 21.

Ticketed passengers can learn about wetlands restoration efforts by the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA), which is partnering with Openlands, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Forest Preserve Districts of Cook, Will, and DuPage counties, Land and Water Resources, Inc., the U.S. Forest Service, the National Forest Foundation, the Wetlands Initiative and other partners to restore and enhance wetlands in the Chicago region.

The CDA, as part of its commitment to the environment, is partnering in restoring and enhancing wetland areas at eight locations in the Chicago region. The wetlands areas undergoing restoration are nearly three times the size of wetlands at O'Hare that needed to be replaced as part of the O'Hare Modernization Program. The O'Hare wetlands were small, isolated and of poor ecological value. These new wetlands sites connect to existing wetlands and will enhance their size, quality, and ecological function, multiplying the benefits of the wetlands restoration program several times over. Restoring wetlands will improve local water quality, absorb carbon dioxide, provide valuable habitat for wildlife, and connect people with nature.

Ticketed passengers can learn more from the O'Hare exhibit about restoration efforts at Deer Grove Forest Preserve - East, Palatine, Cook County; Hadley Valley Preserve, Joliet, Will County; Hyde Lake Wetlands, Chicago, Cook County; Lily Cache Wetland Bank, Bolingbrook, Will County; Messenger Woods Nature Preserve, Homer Glen, Will County; Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, Wilmington, Will County; Tinley Creek Forest Preserve, Tinley Park, Cook County; and West Branch Forest Preserve, Bartlett, DuPage County. To learn more about the wetlands please click here.

What's more, passengers can learn about an O'Hare beehive farm, the world's first airport aeroponic garden at O'Hare, and vegetated green roofs at Midway and O'Hare in feature videos that are playing now on monitors throughout the terminals to educate passengers on the many ongoing sustainability initiatives at O'Hare and Midway International Airports. Other videos will provide fascinating information on sustainable airport construction, the Sustainable Airport Manual, environmentally friendly transportation initiatives and water and energy conservation programs at Chicago's airports. To learn more about CDA's sustainability efforts, click here to read our our 2011 Sustainability Progress Report.

Volunteers participate in 2012 Earth Day Celebration at Deer Grove Forest Preserve.

On Saturday, April 21, the CDA participated in the 2012 Earth Day Celebration at Deer Grove Forest Preserve - East in Palatine. Cook County Board and Forest Preserve President Toni Preckwinkle, who spoke to the volunteers at the event, praised them for their efforts and noted that Cook County is "the most ecologically diverse county in the state" with almost 11 percent of land contained in forest preserves. Additional speakers included Debra Shore, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, who told volunteers that the Cook County Forest Preserve was the first forest preserve in the country." Cook County Forest Preserve Superintendent Arnold Randall spoke to the group of the power of volunteerism and stewardship of Forest Preserve district.

Earlier this month, in separate events, the CDA held GreenGardens exhibits at O'Hare and Midway, featuring several Chicago area organizations that are working to foster a healthier, greener, more sustainable landscape for our region and beyond.

The CDA also participated in the worldwide Earth Hour event in early April by turning off non-essential lighting in the terminals, airport facilities and office buildings at O'Hare and Midway.

Volunteers clean up at Deer Grove Forest Preserve Earth Day event.