New crews in the new year

In 2015, the young adult program will be adding five new crews, including two in Iowa and one in Missouri. Corps Board Member Richard Leopold, who also serves as the interim director of the Polk County Conservation Board in Iowa is looking forward to the new six-person crew in his county. “We are excited to get a dedicated crew in central Iowa,” he said. “The Des Moines metro area will benefit from the Polk County crew’s much needed and highly visible efforts on local trails, parks and waterways.”
 
The six-person Loess Hills crew will be based with Pottawattamie County Conservation near Council Bluffs, Iowa, dedicated to the Loess Hills landform in the western part of the state. The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, Pottawattamie County Conservation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Iowa Department of Natural Resources and many others are collaboratively supporting this crew. And the four-person National Park Service Roving crew based out of Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, near Springfield, Missouri will be dedicated to working with the National Park Service Exotic Plant Management team at different parks throughout the Midwest.
 
In Minnesota, crews will be added in Rochester and Brainerd. With these five additions, the number of year-round young adult crews in both states will reach an all-time high of 37 in 2015.