Southest Side nature preserve awarded $1 million

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it will give $1 million toward restoration and conservation projects at a major open space project on Chicago’s Southeast Side.

The 140,000-acre Millennium Reserve project is a joint effort by state, federal and local officials to restore onetime industrial land into recreational space. Fish and Wildlife Service officials say the grant will support projects in the Calumet region of the reserve. That includes planting 100,000 trees on 60 acres, restoring native migratory bird habitat and restoring coastal wetlands.

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced the grant Thursday at the Millennium Reserve.

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois says the conservation and recreation program will “serve as a lasting gift to future generations of Chicagoans.”