Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Local volunteers plant trees to aid environment
WEST MARLBOROUGH » Stroud Water Research Center celebrated National Volunteer Week on a chilly but sunny Friday afternoon by restoring 2.75 acres along two swales that transport rain water into Buck and Doe Run. Buck and Doe Run is a major tributary of the Brandywine River, which eventually flows downstream to provide drinking water for the city of Wilmington. Volunteers from Exelon Generation, one of the monetary supporters of the planting, were joined by volunteers from Wilmington Trust, the Southern Chester County Young Business Leaders, Lincoln University students, and local community members to plant nearly 1,000 trees and shelters.
“Powering our communities is just the beginning of our commitment to improve the quality of life for people in the communities where we live, work and serve. We provide opportunities for our employees to support the organizations that they care about through volunteer service, and we are honored to continue our partnership with Stroud Water Research Center by supporting their watershed restoration and environmental education efforts,” said Bill Swahl, vice president of Exelon Generation.
The planting, on a property that was once part of the famed King Ranch, is an upstream continuation of watershed restoration sites planted by the Stroud Center with the help of volunteers in the fall of 2017. Research has shown that trees greatly help keep pesticides and other contaminants out of streams.
“With each planting that we do at the Stroud Center, we try to learn something new about how to quickly and efficiently plant trees and get them to help protect our freshwater resources,” said Bern Sweeney, Ph.D., principal investigator and distinguished research scientist, “and the support and commitment of companies like Exelon Generation is vital to our ability to install these plantings. We are grateful for their support and enthusiasm to spend the day planting trees for the health of our streams.”
Funding for this project was provided by Exelon Generation and Tree Vitalize. To learn more about upcoming volunteer opportunities, research projects, and Stroud Center events, visit www.stroudcenter.org.