NSU to present Moliere play
November 1, 2006Nov. 8: Wine Tasting Gala (Thibodaux)
November 3, 2006Two local organizations are seeking volunteers to help bring the term “grassroots initiative” back down to a more literal level.
The Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program and Nicholls State University’s Department of Biological Sciences will join together Saturday, Nov. 4, and Saturday, Nov. 18, to help stop erosion in two of the areas wetlands.
The group’s first project will take place on Fifi Island, a small island just north of Grand Isle. According to Joni Blanchard, public involvement coordinator for BTNEP, the bayou between the two islands has been recently dredged and the sandy soil was deposited on Fifi Island to fill in an area that has been eroding for quite some time.
“They built about 140 acres in less than three weeks of time,” Blanchard said. Now that the group has given the land time to settle and for the excess water to drain, she said now is the perfect time to begin the planting.
“We are planting to help hold the soil in place,” Blanchard explained. “The roots of the plants are what hold the wetlands together.”
Volunteers will be planting two different types of grasses, Smooth Cord and Marsh Hay Cord, on the 140-acre strip Blanchard said. The grass is being supplied by NSU.
“What the students at Nicholls have been doing is collecting plants from specific sites in costal Louisiana and then bringing them back to their farm at NSU and breeding them.” Blanchard said. “Now we will bring them back to the coast and the students at Nicholls will continue to monitor the plants and conduct studies about what works, what doesn’t and why.”
According to Blanchard, this is a great opportunity for youngsters “to see and to touch” coastal restoration. “It’s also great because they will be exposed to real science,” she said. “They will be out there with real scientists and graduate students and the kids will be able to see that you can, in fact, pursue science as a career.”
The plants that will be sown are not labor intensive, Blanchard said. The group plans to bring around 5,000 to 7,000 plants to spread across the area.
The project on Nov. 18 will be a little different. “It’s going to be a lot muddier and a little stickier,” Blanchard said. “This one may be better suited for older kids and adults.” The site for the Nov. 18 “adventure” will be in Leeville just before Grand Isle.
For both events volunteers are encouraged to wear rubber boots and to bring an extra change of socks and shoes for the ride home. Lunch will be provided for volunteers at both sites.
For more information or to volunteer, contact Joni Blanchard at (985) 447-0838.