Below you will find interactive websites, live and static data sets, and other resources that facilitate place-based Earth science learning in Illinois.
America's Watershed Report Card 2020 - Investigate the condition of the Mississippi River Watershed and its basins.
Critical Interface Network Dashboard - This dashboard is maintained by the Critical Interface Network (CINet) and the Intensively Managed Landscapes Critical Zone Observatory based out of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. You can learn more about the data at the CINet - Data page.
WARM - the Illinois Water & Atmosphere Resources Monitoring Program - The Illinois State Water Survey monitors weather, soil, groundwater, sediment, stream flow, and reservoirs, making that data available to the public.
US Drought Monitor - Current map with links to data, summaries, and forecasts
Illinois EPA
Illinois Department of Natural Resources - Threatened & Endangered Species
Illinois State Geological Survey - Quaternary Geology and Wetlands Geology
2020 Insider - 10 Egregious Examples of Environmental Racism in the US
NEA Environmental Justice: Why we should teach it and how to get started
Find Superfund Sites near you at https://epa.maps.arcgis.com/
Illinois EPA
Inequity in consumption of goods and services adds to racial–ethnic disparities in air pollution exposure, Tessum et. al. 2019
Earth Day & Environmental Justice
EcoRise mobilizes a new generation of leaders to design healthy, just, and thriving communities for all.
High School Environmental Justice Unit (10th grade Biology, Marion HS, Marion, Illinois)
NSTA's Joint Humanities-Science project - case studies of environmental justice for 7th grade
National Weather Service - Northern Illinois, Central Illinois, and Southern Illinois
USGS Water Dashboard - real-time data for streams and rivers, groundwater, springs, water quality, precipitation and atmospheric conditions
Climate Change in Illinois - a summary of how Illinois' climate is changing and the impacts of those changes
States at Risk - Illinois - How is climate change putting the people and ecosystems of Illinois at risk?
Climate Reality Project - Illinois - How is the climate crisis affecting Illinois?
Unfamiliar Ground: Bracing for Climate Impacts in the American Midwest - 2019 article from Inside Climate News
An Assessment of the Impacts of Climate Change in Illinois - 2021 Nature Conservancy Report
USGS Water Dashboard - real-time data for streams and rivers, groundwater, springs, water quality, precipitation and atmospheric conditions
River Runner: Follow a drop of water move through any watershed in the contiguous United States.
Model My Watershed: Analyze mapped watershed data, visualize monitoring data, and run model simulations of human impacts on water quality.
NOAA - Illinois - coastlines, demographics, economy and hazards
Great Lakes to Gulf Virtual Observatory - historical and current information about water quality in the rivers, characteristics of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in the rivers and floodplains, and interactions between humans and the watersheds.
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency - Bureau of Water
Illinois Department of Natural Resources - Water
Illinois State Geological Survey
USDA-NRCS Web Soil Survey - A simple yet powerful way to access and use soil data, this interactive soil database includes 95% of US counties, is updated and maintained regularly, and provides links to contact soil scientists in your region.
Illinois Department of Natural Resources - Oil & Gas - Includes information about current hydraulic fracturing
US Energy Information Administration - Illinois Electricity Profile
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency - Office of Energy
Illinois Energy Research and Development - Geology of coal and petroleum resources
Illinois Department of Natural Resources - Mining and Minerals
Illinois State Geological Survey - Industrial Minerals - includes pages on aggregate, bedrock, and clay mining; you can also find information about bedrock geology, biostratigraphy, and sedimentary geology
Illinois Energy Research and Development - Industrial Minerals
Illinois Emergency Management Agency - Hazard Information
University of Illinois - Chicago - Office of Preparedness & Response: Natural Hazards including earthquakes, heat, flooding, tornadoes, and winter storms
Illinois Severe Weather Factsheet
Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
A Look at the Sustainable Development Goals
Resources on the SDGs: Engaging Kids
Earth @ Home -- the Paleontological Research Institute's set of FREE resources, regionally specific and more