DEM recruiting volunteers to remove invasive plants from East Providence

EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management is seeking volunteers to help remove invasive plants from an East Providence reservoir.

The department is working alongside the City of East Providence and the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission to remove invasive water chestnut plants from the Turner Reservoir.

The highly aggressive plant forms dense mats that block sunshine, disrupt native animal and plant life, and is rapidly expanding throughout the body of water.

Two community harvesting events are scheduled, one on Tuesday, July 11 from 5 to 8 p.m. and the other on Saturday, July 15 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

The department said volunteers are needed to hand-pull and collect as many of the invasive plants as possible.

“Paddlers who bring their own canoe or kayak, boaters with small trolling motors, or even anglers donning their chest waders can help by plucking plants out of the water,” the department said.

Volunteers can also stay on land and haul plants from boats for disposal.

More information on the harvesting events is available here.