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11/26/2024 11:53 AMREGIONAL
A pilot program meant to encourage Valley Regional High School (VRHS) students to become stewards of the land and their surrounding environment was launched at Sunset Pond in Essex on Nov. 23.
The program focuses on cutting down invasive vines and plants which have grown over dozens of mature trees at Sunset Pond, as their proliferation is threatening the biodiversity of that area.
Those who took part in the program are students in the Environmental Club and the environmental science class at VRHS.
A press release regarding the pilot program stressed the importance of action being taken at Sunset Pond, citing the Oriental bittersweet and the Japanese barberry, among others, as invasive plants which need to be cut down for the purpose of “saving the trees and preserving the woods surrounding the eastern and southern sides of the beloved and much-used pond.”
The program was brought forth to VRHS by Peter Fleischer, who sits on the Essex Planning and Zoning Commission. Fleischer told the Valley Courier that the program is a “great” way to “get kids involved with their community,” especially considering the concerns about the environment which are being felt by people of all ages.
“In a world where people are despairing about the environment and the planet, just about anyone from age 10 to 90 can find a tree that's been killed by invasive vines and, within 15 minutes of their home, can save a mature tree,” Fleischer said.
Fleischer added that this is especially important for students at VRHS who are going to be experiencing the effects of climate change and should feel empowered to take action and be “doing good for humanity” through programs like this removal effort of invasive plants.
“The trees they save will be around for their lifetimes,” said Fleischer. “When they see that tree [alive] and healthy, they can be proud of it.”
One person who agrees with this viewpoint is Thomas Worthley, a professor of forestry at the University of Connecticut, who has spoken with VRHS students about the threat of the vines at the pond and how the students can learn valuable skills by collaborating and working together on this effort.
“It is the beginning of a lifetime of identifying and removing the invasive plants in places where these individuals will have an influence. It will contribute long-term biodiversity benefits,” said Worthley. “In my opinion, any outdoor activity can be informative, healthy and, worthwhile, especially in an educational and community service setting. Engaging in an activity such as this will help develop hands-on and teamwork skills.”
Worthley said that the Oriental bittersweet and other invasive plants “utilize space and resources that could otherwise be used by native plants, vines, and shrubs.” These invasive plants are not recognized as a food source by the region’s “native suite of insects, birds, fungi, and other organisms,” while they and their ecosystem are “altered by the proliferation of non-native plants.”
Aside from the effects on small organisms, these invasive plants can also have a negative effect on humans, too.
“Everything that human beings do depends on a functional natural environment. Upsetting the balance in nature just makes human activities even more unsustainable, less enjoyable, and sometimes unhealthy,” said Worthley. “For example, in patches of the invasive shrub Japanese barberry, a significantly higher percentage of ticks infected with the Lyme disease spirochete has been documented.
Considering the amount of time that it takes for certain vines to grow and pose a recognizable threat to trees, Fleischer said that the program may be something which takes place with a new crop of students every few years, rather than be a yearly event. Nevertheless, Fleischer hopes to see the pilot program lead to a consistent effort by VRHS students at Sunset Pond and that those efforts also reach private properties in Essex.
“By getting the kids to do this in a very noticeable part of town, I’m hoping that the idea spreads to the private landowners, and then you’ve got a multiplication effect,” he said. “If the kids can do 60 trees in one morning, and people get the idea they can do it on their property, then you’re talking about hundreds of thousands.”