Closing arboretum puts more at risk

I appreciate the Morton Arboretum's desire to keep people safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, all decisions, even those with good intentions, have unintended consequences. I believe the decision to close the Arboretum is putting people in greater danger, rather than less.

First, the closure of the Arboretum has caused people to overcrowd the DuPage County and Cook County forest preserves. I recently visited Hidden Lake Forest Preserve adjacent to the arboretum. It was packed beyond a level where safe social distancing was possible. The parking lot was full. If the arboretum was open, the distribution of people across nearby forested spaces would be wider and more spaced out.

Second, the innate desire to get outside is strong right now. It's a way for people to maintain mental and physical health. By closing the arboretum, you are endangering that mental and physical health at a time when it is crucial for people to maintain high levels of both forms of health in the event they contract COVID-19. Immune-system health is related to mental, physical, gut and sleep health. All of those benefit from outdoor activity and forest therapy.

The arboretum gates can be open with optional donation boxes at the entrance booths. No employees or volunteers are needed to risk any contact. According to epidemiologist Michael Osterholm, we will likely endure multiple waves in this pandemic for at least 12 to 18 months. It's important that the arboretum reopen immediately. Its importance to the community is more vital now than ever before, but it cannot serve its proper role while it is closed.

Billy Joe Mills

Glen Ellyn