If the idea of walking through the woods and exploring an area of the province you may have never seen while getting your hands dirty to protect the environment sounds like your idea of fun, then mark Saturday on your calendar.

An invasive plant removal event is being held at Pleasant River, hosted by Treasured Wetlands of Nova Scotia, the event is a partnership between the province and Ducks Unlimited Canada. The Pleasant River Wilderness area consists of approximately 2,900 hectares of wetlands, woodlands, streams and rivers in Queens County.  It has been designated as a protected area by the provincial government.

Conservation Program Specialist with Ducks Unlimited Canada Izzy Clarke says the Pleasant River site was nominated by the Mersey Tobiatic Research Institute to help protect species at risk. Not identifying which species is at risk is best practice according to Clarke who says humans are often the biggest threat.

Clarke says that’s not the only reason they chose Pleasant River. “It also is really special because it has these gigantic red maples,” said Clarke. “Red maples are a very common species you find them all over the place but it's very uncommon to find ones that are as large and as old as these so it's quite special.”

The chance to work alongside multiple agencies protecting and conserving wilderness areas also made the site an obvious choice. “It was also a good opportunity to partner with several different organizations because the Nova Scotia Nature Trust owns part of this land so it's a great opportunity to highlight different conservation measures that are being applied to our wetlands across the province,” said Clarke.

Clarke says after an orientation volunteers will be working to remove glossy buckthorn.

According to the Nature Conservancy of Canada, “glossy buckthorn is a non-native tree that was introduced to Canada from Eurasia approximately 100 years ago. It can grow as tall as seven metres.”

Clarke says as glossy buckthorn grows; it chokes out native plant species.

The Pleasant River invasive plant removal is the first of four such events Treasured Wetlands of Nova Scotia will be hosting this summer.

Clarke says each location has something special to offer and they hope events like these will encourage more people to learn about the diverse areas around the province.

“A lot of these wetlands are kind of like hidden treasures to everybody outside of the immediate community that that they're in, and that's definitely part of the intention of this program, is to draw attention to them and invite people out to them and kind of invite people to be curious about these really special and unique ecosystems,” said Clarke.

People wishing to participate in Saturday’s Pleasant River event can join either the 10am-noon or the 1:00pm to 3:00pm sessions.  Anyone wishing to participate is advised to dress accordingly. Clarke suggests wearing long shirts and pants and closed toe shoes. Work gloves, tools such as shovels or pruners, and some tick spray are also good to bring along.

Registration is not necessary, just show up at the Pleasant River Community Hall. For more information, see The Treasured Wetlands of Nova Scotia Facebook page.

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