The Illinois Valley Sunrise and LaSalle Rotary Clubs are collaborating with the city of LaSalle for an environmental project. The clubs and the city of LaSalle want to help the monarch butterfly and bumblebee populations. IV Sunrise Rotary Park Chair J. Burt says the clubs want to make an impact now that rotary clubs around the world are starting to focus on the environment. He says bees and butterflies are declining and are under great stress.
The Rotary Clubs want to create a ten-acre pollinator garden that grows milkweed and other flowers to help the population of bees and butterflies. It would be on the west side of Rotary Park in LaSalle. Burt says grants are available through Rotary International.
After they turn in the grant at the end of the month, they will start fundraising for the garden over the summer. A report from the Associated Press says the monarch butterfly population has declined between 22% and 72% over the last 10 years, depending on how it’s measured. There have been multiple reports how much of the bumblebee population the United States has lost. The LaSalle City Council took a straw vote that unanimously showed support for the project.