With the return of the warmer weather, more and more people are outdoors including volunteers. Nearly a dozen people took part in a volunteer work party last month at Delta Ponds. Floating in canoes and kayaks, the group targeted ludwigia, an aquatic invasive plant species.
While it took a keen eye to find the plants and a gentle hand to pull the plant and roots up, volunteers managed to fill several canoes. All of the plants were then spread high up on the bank to dry out and die. The City has been controlling ludwigia at Delta Ponds for more than five years, primarily with contractors. This year the City pledged to use volunteers as a match for grant funding received from the Oregon State Weed Board.
Coordinators plan to host similar volunteer parties this summer with the intent of building a large volunteer contingent that might meet on a monthly basis in the future.