Green team seeking recruits to help environment

The Lower Mainland Green Team is looking for volunteers to get outdoors and help the environment. The group, started by Surrey resident Lyda Salatian, gives people a way to get together while making their communities more environmentally friendly.

"We want to get people together and tackling environmental issues that need a group of people," Salatian said. "(But) it's more than just that. ... We want to restore, conserve and enhance our natural environment by engaging volunteers in educational hands-on activities."

The Lower Mainland Green Team is the first stewardship group that covers the larger region. Since the group started in 2011, Salatian has been amassing volunteers from all over the Lower Mainland for a variety of projects. Typical activities include removing invasive plants, restoring shoreline habitat, preparing and harvesting vegetable beds on community farms, planting native plants and trees and picking up litter. The group has completed 5,081 volunteer hours, and they've removed more than 50,000 pounds of invasive species and planted 2,669 native plants and trees.

The team works to clean up provincial, regional and municipal parks.

"Every level of park is fair game. That's what makes us particularly unique," Salatian said.

The team also works to support local groups, like the Burnaby Lake Park Association, and Salatian is always hopeful that team members will go on to volunteer with local organizations.

"We build on the work of existing groups," she said, adding that regular maintenance is important, especially when dealing with invasive plants, which will eventually grow back.

"People don't need experience," Salatian added. "It's learning by doing."

Due to insurance issues for volunteers, Salatian hasn't been able to have the group work in New Westminster yet, but she's hoping to bring the volunteers' efforts to the Royal City, and residents from every municipality are always welcome to join. So far, there are 1,502 people signed up to volunteer. Between 20 and 40 volunteers come out for each event, and Salatian often supplies refreshments and snacks, including cookies in the shape of invasive species.

Salatian organizes the team's outings through Meetup.com.

The next event scheduled for Burnaby is on May 26. Volunteers will be working with the Burnaby Lake Park Association, removing invasive ivy. The event starts at 12:45 p.m. at the Burnaby Lake.

For more information, or to join the Meetup group, go to www.meetup.com/TheLowerMainlandGreenTeam.