Volunteers needed for Saturday’s wetlands project

Two 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. 18, to help stop erosion in two of the areas wetlands.

“We are planting to help hold the soil in place,” according to Jodi Blanchard, public involvement coordinator for BTNEP. “The roots of the plants are what hold the wetlands together.”

Volunteers will plant marsh plants, supplied by NSU, to help hold together the newly pumped site near the Leeville Bridge, she said.

“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.”

The work Saturday will be a bit muddier and stickier than the group’s outing earlier this month. “Because of the mucky nature of this site, this outing is better suited to teenagers and adults in smaller numbers working from boats or the shoreline,” she said.

Blanchard said the outing offers families the opportunity to touch and see real coastal restoration projects, to make a difference for the health of the coast, and to learn first-hand from real scientists and graduate students how the science of coastal restoration works.

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.

Earlier this month, the group visited Fifi Island, a small island just north of Grand Isle. The two islands were 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. Once the land had time to settle and for the excess water to drain, the planting could begin.

“We are planting to help hold the soil in place,” she explained. “The roots of the plants are what hold the wetlands together. 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. 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.”

The group planted 5,000 to 7,000 plants across the area.

The work is made possible thanks to a community-based restoration grand from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NSU, The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) and the BTNEP, she said.

For more information or to volunteer, contact Blanchard at (985) 447-0838.