CMAP's most prominent natural-resources activity to date has been to form and coordinate the Regional Water Supply Planning Group (RWSPG) for an expanded 11-county area of northeastern Illinois. Funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the RWSPG is integral to a three-year regional planning effort to forecast water demand, gauge the possibility of shortages, and identify solutions in Fall 2009.
The watershed – all of the land area that drains to a single body of water – has become the planning and management unit of choice for many water resource issues. CMAP provides technical assistance to consortia of local governments and private organizations working to develop and implement watershed-based plans. Published in 2007, the Guide for Developing Watershed Action Plans in Illinois is useful to anyone interested in starting a locally-led watershed planning initiative or anyone else interested in strengthening an existing plan.
CMAP is also currently developing plans for three watersheds in the Kishwaukee River basin as well as collaborating with the Will County Stormwater Management and Planning Committee to prepare a plan for Jackson Creek.
The agency's water-quality planning activities also include:
Non-point Source Polution. CMAP coordinates federal grants for watershed restoration and non-point source water pollution control projects in the watersheds of the Upper Des Plaines and Fox Rivers and Salt Creek.
Stormwater Management. CMAP has a long history of efforts in stormwater management. The agency has provided technical assistance to the county stormwater management agencies in the development of their plans. It has also coordinated basin-specific flood control studies such as that on the upper Des Plaines River. CMAP staff have prepared model local ordinances for floodplain management and stormwater drainage and detention, and provides assistance to communities in their implementation.
Water Supply. CMAP is part of the Southern Lake Michigan Regional Water Supply Consortium, which is funded by a grant from the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant program and the Joyce Foundation.
Lake Restoration and Protection. CMAP provides assistance to local governments in carrying out restoration and protection projects on small lakes. Many of these projects have been funded by the Illinois Clean Lakes Program. The commission also coordinates the Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program through which data on water conditions is routinely collected for over 70 lakes.