David Chuang, Eagle Scout
Total Volunteer Hours Worked: 115
I organized an invasive plant removal project with the Fairfax County Park Authority Invasive Management Area (FCPA IMA) program at Wayland Street Park. The project helped in controlling the invasive populations and gave room for the native plants to regrow, having been overrun previously by the plants we targeted.
The Invasive Management Area Program, among other things, searches for new populations of invasive species so that they can be removed early by enlisting local volunteers to help with invasive removal projects. Invasive plant species can harm the local ecosystem by aggressively taking over areas inhabited by native plants, outcompeting native plants and affecting animals which depend on those plants and/or which may be hindered by the invasive plants themselves. By removing them, the invasive species’ spread can be reduced, preventing them from having as much of an impact on the ecosystem.
After my proposal was approved, I chose two deputy volunteers, and spoke with them to instruct them on the project details, and provided them extra images and information about the invasive species. They also took part in an overview of the site on the day of the project along with the IMA site leader beforehand. A few days before the project start date, I visited Wayland Street Park to meet with the IMA site leader. Additionally, I prepared a demonstration and list of species for the purpose of informing volunteers of proper removal procedures once they were on-site.
Tools, bags, and protective equipment for the project were provided by the park. The tools & supplies were brought to the site prior to the on-site removal events, along with water, masks, and a first aid kit. No additional permits / permissions were required besides a separate project application to the FCPA in collaboration with the FCPA site leader of the target site.
Native trees (Marked with pink ties)
Observations and Challenges
We removed a large amount of invasive plants, filling up the entire truck-sized dumpster on site. Every volunteer was willing to remove the woody shrubs, which was the main focus of the project. No injuries or errors occurred, and the clean-up was fast and successful.
Carrying the removed foliage was difficult, as it was very heavy and thorny plants got in the way. At one point, a volunteer pointed out that the removed foliage was starting to outpace the rate of branches being hauled to the dumpster, so extra help was shifted to hauling for the last hours or so of the project.
freshly cut invasive tree
Changes (from original proposal)
I made two main changes namely, budgeting for food an extra supplies, and choosing two volunteers as deputies for extra leadership and knowledge onsite, in case it was needed. Originally, I intended to supply less food and used only the tools and supplies provided by the site leader, but I decided to get extra food and supplies.
Leadership
I was able to instruct the volunteers to act on the goals of the project effectively. Beforehand, I introduced them to the basic information before going on an on-site walkthrough where I informed the volunteers more in-depth about the project details including tool usage, identification of target plants, and its dangers. They were able to successfully act on those information during the project without issue. I also guided two volunteers to gain experience and knowledge of the project beforehand, and during the project, they were able to successfully guide other volunteers in turn using that knowledge.
I made decisions regarding the logistics of the project based on observations and feedback from the volunteers to meet the goals of the project. I assessed the current state during the project, listen to feedback, and chose to distribute the tools and work as necessary.
Making sure that volunteers were acting efficiently and resolving problems. There were a few times where issues came up or progress was being slowed, and I had to think of ways to distribute our resources to solve the problems.
It was rewarding to see the progress being made on the project and seeing that the deputy volunteers were able to help other volunteers in their groups. The instruction given seemed to work well, and no volunteers had problems finding work to do.
I learned that leaders should be capable of helping others perform tasks on their own. During the project, I only needed to instruct them and then give a few instructions, guiding them to act efficiently and as a team without having to give more specific instructions. And this worked very well for the project. A leader’s job isn’t to manage their followers’ every move, rather it is to prepare them to solve tasks on their own and guide them to solve them well and where it is needed.
