Groundwork Anacostia River Dc

Programs: Youth programs: developing young people to become the next generation of environmental leaders and stewards is a major focus of groundwork anacostia. Groundwork's strategy for achieving this and developing these "natural leaders" is through our "green team" program. The green teams are youth and young adults that we engage in service learning activities that include volunteer community conservation activities, active recreation, and career exposure. In short, we connect these young people to the outdoors. Our dc high school "green teams" operate with a team leader from their high school approximately 20 hours per month after school and on weekends performing service learning activities to restore the river, green their school yards, etc. Students receive community service credit. We partner with the outdoor nation , local universities and high schools to help dedicated university dents called campus club fellows, facilitate close-to-home recreation outings each month for their peers. Fellows serve as lead mentors, facilitate meetings and evaluate progress. We partner with the epa's meaningful watershed environmental experiences program to engage students in the watts branch watershed. Finally, our green teams have traveled to special national park service programs in yellowstone and elsewhere.

community green assets: brownfields are vacant and derelict land. Vacant lots contribute to blight in many of dc's east of the river communities, especially in ward 7, which has more vacant lots than any ward in washington, dc. Groundwork works with local residents and neighborhoods to turn these vacant lots into community assets. Groundwork works to empower the community to decide what they want the vacant lots to become and stays with the community to ensure the projects' success. Some the projects that have been completed include the fort mahan trail connector, the mayfair mansions community garden, the deanwood learning garden, the glenncrest community garden, the peoples coop community garden, the parkside community park, and the empowerhouse green infrastructure/low impact development maintenance.

anacostia river restoration: restoration of the health of the anacostia river and its watershed is a major focus of groundwork anacostia. Groundwork's strategy for achieving a fishable and swimmable anacostia river is to work in and with the communities that border the anacostia river in washington, dc and prince georges county, maryland, to empower the residents, businesses, and organizations who live, work, and play in these communities to become better stewards of the anacostia watershed. Groundwork anacostia works to achieve this through the following programs and projects. Bandalong litter traps - maintenance of in-stream trash capturing devices that traps floatable trash and debris before it enters the anacostia river. Maintenance teams remove, quantify and collect and report data from these traps weekly and monthly. Anacostia river trash booms - groundwork has entered into a partnership agreement with the earth conservation corps (ecc) to assist with the maintenance and management of 3 trash collection booms located in the anacostia river. Anacostia wetlands awareness and restoration effort (aware) at anacostia park and kenilworth aquatic gardens in washington, dc - groundwork assists anacostia watershed society staff in wetland restoration activities, including removing old and establishing new goose exclosures, propagating native wetland plants, and re-vegetating riparian buffers.