Volunteers Needed for Wetland Plantings in City Park this Saturday
NEW ORLEANS (December 16, 2008) – The America’s WETLAND Conservation Corps is calling on New Orleanians to give back and go green this holiday season.
More than two dozen volunteers are needed to plant spartina and other vegetation in New Orleans’ historic City Park this Saturday, December 20, 2008, from 8 am- noon. Volunteers, directed by the America's WETLAND Conservation Corps, will plant, nurture and incubate mini-wetland habitats that will later be used to restore Louisiana’s precious coast. This volunteer event, which will take place rain or shine, will be held at the Pelican Greenhouse located near Christian Brothers School in City Park.
As the largest recreation center in the New Orleans metropolitan area, City Park is essential to the cultural and recreational rebirth of the Crescent City. Volunteers have been an essential component of City Park’s recovery from Hurricane Katrina. During the devastating storm of 2005, the Parksustained an estimated $43 million in damages when it was inundated with one to eight feet of water. While water has receded, much work still needs to be done to restore the Park to its original condition.
To sign up or learn more about this volunteer opportunity, contact Trevor Powell at tp1188@yahoo.com or (985) 859-9061.
Volunteers are encouraged to dress appropriately (no open-toed sandals) and asked to bring work gloves, boots, and anything else they may need to work in muddy conditions. Volunteers may also bring food and beverages. Drinks will be available. Lunch will not be provided.
About the America’s WETLAND Conservation Corps
Home to dozens of threatened and endangered species and our nation’s largest flyways, America’s WETLAND is one of the most significant estuaries in the world. An amazingly complex ecosystem composed of swamplands, marshes and forests that span over 6,000 square miles of Louisiana’s coast, this region provides protection to hundreds of billions of dollars worth of property and infrastructure, produces 30 percent of the nation's oil and gas, provides 30 percent of the country's seafood and is home to the largest port system in the U.S. Despite its nationally strategic importance, this valuable landscape is vanishing at an astonishing rate of 24 miles per year.
The America's WETLAND Conservation Corps is an AmeriCorps program which engages 18 members and hundreds of volunteers in hands-on coastal restoration and recovery activities across Louisiana, including vegetative plantings, restorative interventions, community-wide clean-ups, and hands-on educational projects for members, volunteers and the communities they serve.
Directions to the Pelican Greenhouse in City Park
From I-10 (Ponchartrain Expressway East) take Exit 231A to City Park Avenue. Keep Straight on Ponchartrain Blvd. after exiting. Take a left onto City Park Ave and continue 0.7 miles. Turn left onto Marconi Drive and continue 0.8 miles. Go past the main entrances of City Park and go under I-610. Immediately after going under I-610 take a right onto Zachary Taylor Drive. Continue on Zachary Taylor Dr. for 0.5 miles. Take a right onto Golf Road and go under I-610 and then under the Rail Road Tracks. Road name changes to Golf Drive after going under I-610. Continue past the Rail Road less than 200 yards and the Pelican Greenhouse Complex will be on the left. Park near the gravel driveway. For questions or additional information, contact Trevor Powell at tp1188@yahoo.com or (985) 859-9061.
The America's WETLAND Foundation is supported by a growing coalition of conservation and environmental organizations across the globe and has drawn private support from businesses that see wetlands protection as a key to economic growth.
This message and other America's WETLAND Foundation activities are made possible by the generous support of "World Sponsor" Shell; "National Sponsors": Acadian Ambulance Service, AE Com Coastal, API, BG North America, LLC, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, BP, CH2M HILL, Chevron, CITGO Petroleum Corporation, Coca-Cola Enterprises and Baton Rouge Coca-Cola Bottling Company, ConocoPhillips, Cox Communications, Dow Chemical Company, ExxonMobil, Freeport McMoRan, Hornbeck Offshore Services, McIlhenny Company, The Shaw Group, Spectra Energy and Whitney National Bank; Louisiana Sponsors: the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Louisiana Lottery Corporation, Louisiana Network, New Orleans Hornets, New Orleans Saints, and the Paragon Casino Resort.
If your organization would like to join this list of forward-thinking businesses, call the Foundation's offices at 1-866-4-WETLAND (1-866-493-8526) or email a campaign representative at americaswetland@mcopr.com.
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