Lost Mound Unit of the Upper Mississippi River NWFR, looking west across the sand prairie with ammunition bunkers visible in the distance. - FWS photo

Lost Mound Unit of the Upper Mississippi River NWFR, looking east with the forested Mississippi River bluffs in the distance. - FWS photo

Savanna Army Depot / Lost Mound Unit of the UMRNWFR

The former Savanna Army Depot, Savanna, Illinois is a 1995 Base Realignment and Closure site that has been undergoing environmental cleanup and transfer of land to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), and a Local Redevelopment Authority (LRA). 

The Lost Mound Unit of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge includes 9,857 acres at the Depot managed by the FWS under a 2003 MOA with the Army.  The Lost Mound Unit includes 13 miles of river shoreline and over 4,000 acres of sand prairie, representing the largest expanse of native prairie left in Illinois.  It is also home to a total of 47 state- and federally-listed species (including 21 birds, 14 plants, 1 mammal, 2 reptiles, 3 fish, and 6 mussels); federally listed species include the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and Higgins eye pearly mussel (Lampsilis higginsii).   

The site captures multiple conservation priorities identified in the Illinois State Wildlife Comprehensive Plan:  it is a Priority Conservation Area under the Farmland and Prairie campaign; it is a Conservation Opportunity Area for 6 of the 9 habitat types in need of conservation in Illinois; and, the 47 state-listed species found there are all identified as Species in Greatest Need of Conservation for Illinois.  Additionally, the site is designated an Important Bird Area by the National Audubon Society and the American Bird Conservancy.  The FWS and IDNR cooperatively manage their properties for the benefit of all of these resources.

Pre-Acquisition Contaminant Surveys

The total acreage included in the MOA is divided between 24 parcels that are in the process of being formally transferred from the Army to the Service.  The Depot was listed as a CERCLA National Priorities List site in 1989 and due to the extensive environmental contamination on site, land only transfers to the FWS after it is declared uncontaminated by USEPA, ILEPA, and FWS.  A total of 3,022 acres (2 parcels) have already transferred from the Army to the Service since 2003, with 22 parcels remaining.

As part of the FWS intra-agency coordination to facilitate property acquisition, the RIFO Environmental Contaminants (EC) Program has been coordinating with Refuges and Realty to complete Pre-Acquisition Contaminant Surveys for each transfer parcel once it has been cleared by the regulatory agencies.  RIFO EC staff have been performing 341 FW 3 Environmental Site Assessment, Level 1 Surveys for each parcel to document and assess environmental liability from hazardous materials and other environmental contaminants.  During the first quarter of FY2007, RIFO staff completed a Level 1 Survey for Parcels 1 & 2 (54.4 acres) and are finalizing a Level 1 Survey for Parcel 8A (65.5 acres).

For more information please contact Anne Mankowski at 309-793-5800 ext. 211.