Natural Areas

By Lydia Clapp, Duluth Field Crew Member / AmeriCorps Member

My favorite part about serving with Conservation Corps is that every week is different. The natural resource field is very broad and each project allows me to get a taste of different career paths. At the same time the position allows me to explore many parts of the state. I feel like my connection to nature has grown with each project because I am able to witness the complexity of the natural environment.

Each place that I have been comes with amazing scenery. But if you take a closer look there are things like invasives threatening much of the biodiversity. It’s both beauty and curiosity that originally sparked my love for nature. But now what keeps me driven to protect it is seeing how so many things can impact the health of these ecosystems.

One project that has stuck with me, was removing buckthorn along the St Croix river. Before this project I had some knowledge of the species but had no idea just how much it can take over an area hindering the ability for other plants to come in. I had likely seen many areas full of buckthorn previously but just didn’t realize it at the time. I find this concept interesting because as I was working tirelessly to remove buckthorn I was seeing how much the scenery was changing. The area was beautiful before but the potential it has now to be a thriving ecosystem without the invasive is exciting. All this makes it even more evident to me that the work we are doing can have a drastically positive effect on ecosystems and landscapes across the state. I am eager to learn more about the challenges that other places face and work to combat these.