Et cetera : NCCC Cleans Up the Red River

By: Madison Shoemaker AmeriCorps NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) team Maple 3 is hard at work in Fargo, North Dakota. The team is working with their sponsor River Keepers while staying at a city owned house. The NCCC team’s main task is invasive species removal by the Red River. Trees such as buckthorn, box elders, as well as other weeds are taken out with chainsaws, pole saws and smaller tools. This ensures that the native plants continue to grow as they should and also clears out hidden areas to prevent negative activity in the community. So far an average of 7,890 square feet of river front has been cleared a day. On off weather days the team works to better the condition of the house they are in for the city. They also give a hand at a local homeless shelter, Churches United. The team will end their journey with River Keepers on September 9 completing their third round of the year.