John Mach and the Desplaines dam removal endeavor

[Nicko]

This made me smile. You da man, John!

http://www.rblandmark.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=6132&TM=84283.3

Posted: Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Article comment by: Howard A. Brundage IV

Thanks for writing this article, Mr. Skolnik. I’m thrilled to hear
that the dam project is inching forward. I do, however, have one beef:
no mention of John Mach & the Hofmann Dam River Rats.

With great confidence, I can say that there is no one on the planet
who has more comprehensive knowledge regarding our section of the
river than John, long-time President of the Hofmann Dam River Rats.
Other people may know more about fish, or dams, or plants, or the
history of the region, but regarding our local area, the greatest
single depository of river-related knowledge is John’s head. It was
John and the River Rats, who started selling dam removal to officials
in the late’90s. John has been following the snail-like progress of
this project while the fair weather supporters, including me, drifted
away to focus on things that were more likely to happen. Thanks to
John & the River Rats, the river between Hofmann Dam and the 47th
Street Bridge is an IL Department of Natural Resources special
conservation area. That designation places limits on fishing harvests,
increases conservation officer patrols, and puts us at the top of the
list when fish stocking is appropriate.

Clearly, no story about the dam or improvements in the river is
complete without mentioning John and his Hofmann Dam River Rats. If it
were up to me, I’d name the area The John Mach Special Conservation
Area.