Preservation of Shoreline Areas by High School Students Final Report Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC) 7/1/08 6/30/09

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1 Preservation of Shoreline Areas by High School Students Final Report Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC) 7/1/08 6/30/09 Project Summary CENYC motivated high school youth to implement tree planting and related projects in the north Bronx along the Bronx River and Long Island Sound, in midtown Manhattan and in Inwood Hill Park along the Hudson, in Canarsie, Brooklyn, and in the South Bronx The major goals of CENYC s Stewardship Project were congruent with HEP goals, specifically Clean up pollution in the estuary, Preserve, manage and enhance habitat and ecological health, Public education and community involvement. The original objectives were to: Educate 325 students from two high schools (DeWitt Clinton H.S. and the High School for Environmental Studies) and one youth program (SOBRO in South Bronx) about the coastal waters around NYC and how to protect waterways by improving adjoining land areas. Motivate youth to plant 100 trees along the Bronx River shoreline, 400 in Pelham Bay Park near the Long Island Sound, 200 in Inwood Hill Park adjacent to the Hudson River and 50 in the South Bronx in the Million Trees target zone. Also to plant 800 ground cover plants in Morningside Park and 350 in Riverside Park, both in the Hudson River sewershed. Youth were to remove 2,000 sq ft. of invasive species in the latter two parks. To highlight these goals and objectives the course of action was to work with each class on a weekly basis for 4 7 weeks to engage them in curriculum lessons related to the health of coastal waters. CENYC worked with the appropriate agencies to set up the restoration projects. The accomplishments were: 805 students from 35 classes in 8 schools from 3 boroughs participated in classroom lessons and 17 restoration projects. The field projects occurred in 10 NYC parks, 1 private recreation area and one high school campus along 5 coastal waters. 779 native trees and shrubs and an additional 3,251 ground cover and herbaceous plants were planted. Invasive species were removed from 21,900 square feet of parkland. Two erosion control fences were installed, 1,000 square feet of grass seed and 2,000 square feet of wood chips were spread, countless leaves raked, and a small amount of letter removed. 1

2 The biggest problem was convincing the schools to provide the supports necessary to take students on trips, especially paying for substitute teachers to take over classes not involved in the program, from our supporting teachers. This problem was solved through negotiation and making some adjustments in how many classes and teachers went on particular trips so as reduce the number needed. The program evaluation was done by tabulating the services produced: the number of trees planted, area of invasives removed etc. Impact on students was assessed through written student evaluations and evaluation meetings with teachers. Narrative While the project plan as laid out in CENYC s proposal commenced on 9/1/08, some preparatory work was done over the summer of Lessons were researched and prepared. New elements were added to lessons done in the past and old lessons elements were reconfigured. For example more of an emphasis was placed on the measurement of salinity using the specific gravity/temperature method than had been done in our program in the last few years. New maps, posters and park histories were gathered and implemented in the first sets of lessons in September and were used in ensuring months. We also confirmed the participation of schools listed in the proposal and enlisted additional schools. DeWitt Clinton High School northwest Bronx In the fall of 2008 DeWitt Clinton High School completed the class sessions (4 classes, 100 students) and then motivated students to plant 95 native trees and 350 herbaceous plants along the Bronx River under the supervision of the Bronx River Alliance, 175 Euonymus plants in Bennett Park in northern Manhattan with the Parks Department, 288 native tress on Hunter Island near the Long Island Sound in cooperation with the Natural Resources Group of the City s Parks Department, and 200 trees in Van Cortlandt Park on November 13 th with the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park. In September another group planted 770 Loriepe on the Broadway Berm in Ft. Tyron Park, in an area which drains to catch basins which drain to the Hudson. At the Bronx River the students also did water testing which yielded favorable dissolved oxygen (8.5) and ph (6.8) readings and a soil compaction study which indicated reasonably good filtration of water into the soil in the shoreline area. The Clinton students also removed 1,300 square feet of invasives from the Hunter Island area. In the spring of 2009 four new classes (100 students 3 Earth Science classes and 1 Living Environment) studied coastal waters and ways of preserving water quality. They tested soil compaction as an indicator of the potential for erosion. They planted 11 native trees on their campus and 155 Spicebush, Pin Oak and Red Maple trees in Pelham Bay Park near the Long Island Sound. 2

3 High School for Environmental Studies (HSES) midtown west, Manhattan We worked with six classes at HSES (170 students). On October 6 th, 29 HSES youth removed woodchips from a 2,000 square foot section of Morningside Park, redistributed the chips around ten large trees and a 300 square foot garden in the park, and spread grass seed over 1,000 square feet of the area, where basins drain to the Hudson. On October 7 th, 35 additional HSES students planted 1,500 Loriepe plants along the Broadway Berm; including the contribution by the Clinton students nearly 2,300 were planted in these areas as part of an overall community effort in which some 6,500 have been planted. The other half of the ninth grade class 130 students studied the coastal waters around the city in a 4 lesson sequence. They proceeded to participate in two restoration projects. Two classes removed the invasive plants Burdock, Norway Maple and Sycamore Maple from 2,500 square feet of Ft. Tryon Park and spread 216 cubic feet of wood chips over a 1,000 square foot area. The area drains to catch basins that drain to the Hudson River. Two other classes planted 256 Virginia Creeper, Blue Stem Aster, White Stem Aster and Goldenrod plants in Inwood Hill Park, near the Hudson. Both sets of classes did water testing as part of their field projects, finding that Hudson River water has improved with respect to dissolved oxygen levels. Academy of Conservation and the Environment Carnarsie, Brooklyn After completing the class lessons 33 students from the Academy for Conservation and the Environment (ACE) removed litter, planted trees and tested water and soil compaction in the Sebago Canoe Club along Paedergat Basin in Carnarsie, Brooklyn. The water quality and soil compaction results were good although a local activist present during the field project stated that lowered quality occurs during intermittent CSO events. Washington Irving High School (Gramercy Park, Manhattan) and Marte Valley High School (Lower Eastside, Manhattan) We did an abbreviated version of the class lesions with four classes (2 lessons each) at Washington Irving and Marte Valley High Schools. Each school did a restoration project at Riverside Park. 27 Marte Valle students removed invasives from a 300 square foot area at the Kossuth Tilden Island (113 th street) which drains to area catch basins, installed a fence on the island and raked countless leaves. The Washington Irving youth removed and bagged invasives (Mugwort, Multi floral rose) from a 16,000 square foot slope adjorning the Soldiers and Sailors Monument at 88 th Street. Both schools also tested Hudson River water for oxygen (8.5, 7 ppm), ph (7.2, 7.5) and salinity (29ppt) and reported the results to the Riverside Park Fund. 3

4 Edward R. Murrow High School Midwood, Brooklyn An Advance Placement Environmental Science class studied NYC coastal waters and ways of preserving them and then planted 200 Virginia Creeper, Milkwood and Goldenrod plants in Canarsie Park. The students also removed Mugwort from 900 square feet of the park. SOBRO Youth Group South Bronx IS 216/217 The after school youth group developed by the South Bronx Overall Economic Development Organization (SOBRO) planted 27 trees and removed 360 square feet of Mugwort and Garlic Mustard from a slope in Claremont Park. The project will help to prevent erosion and runoff in an area that drains to catch basins in the Bronx River/East River sewershed. *Totals Under this grant 805 students from 35 classes in 8 schools from 3 boroughs participated in classroom lessons and 17 restoration projects. The field projects occurred in 10 NYC parks, 1 private recreation area and one high school campus along 5 coastal waters. 779 native trees and shrubs and an additional 3,251 ground cover and herbaceous plants were planted. Invasive species were removed from 21,900 square feet of parkland. Two erosion control fences were installed, 1,000 square feet of grass seed and 2,000 square feet of wood chips were spread, countless leaves raked, and a small amount of litter removed. We far exceeded the proposed number of schools (8 compared to 3), classes (35 to 14), students (805 to 325) and projects (17 to 9). We planted more trees, herbaceous plants and ground cover plants than proposed. Students did not plant any bulbs but they removed a significant amount of invasive plants not called for in the proposal and did other projects wood chippings, grass seeding and fence building, not included in the original proposal. Our biggest problem was convincing the schools to provide the supports necessary to take students on trips, especially paying for substitute teachers to take over classes not involved in the program, from our supporting teachers. We solved this problem through negotiation and making some adjustments in how many classes and teachers went on particular trips so as to reduce the number needed. Teacher comments on CENYC's EE program this fall: From: Ross Jacqueline To: Barry Weinbrom (Consultant Dept. of Ed) Sent: Thu, 20 Nov 2008 Subject: Mike Zamm and Field Trip 4

5 "Thank you so much for the wonderful experience that the students and I had on Monday's field trip. I believe that the students had a chance to truly experience a lot of the concepts that we have been discussing in class." Barry's response: "Thanks Jackie for the positive feedback. I agree and thought the trip was a great experience for your students. This is the type of activities your students need and I look forward to providing you with similar types of experiences that allow them to feel good about themselves and the content they are learning about. A Few Student Comments in Their Evaluations: "The activity that I could say I found worthwhile would be when the class planted hundreds of trees and shrubs." Thanks to you Mr. Zamm I have a deeper understanding in life and now want to pursue park restoration as a career. I never would have thought that helping out this world planting trees and shrubs would be so fun and interesting." "I felt very good about everything I did in my class. I learned a lot about new things and had the opportunity to do some experiments which I enjoyed." The tree planting and solar ovens are great and interesting projects. I enjoyed the activity of trying and discovering a new subject. These projects are an important factor in my Earth Science education. The activity I enjoyed the most was when we planted the trees because we had a positive impact on the environment. My opinion of this program is wonderful. These days, people do not give thanks to nature. Throughout this program, I learned appreciation of nature. 5

6 DeWitt Clinton students plant at the Bronx River. ACE students collecting water samples at Paedergat Basin. 6

7 IS 216/217 plants trees in Claremont Park. HSES youth remove the invasive plant Burdock from Ft. Tyron Park. 7