Corps looking for volunteers for National Public Lands Day

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers invites volunteers to help celebrate National Public Lands Day by planting trees and shrubs at Cottage Grove Reservoir, south of Eugene, Saturday, September 28.  

This event supports the nation’s largest single-day volunteer restoration effort for America’s public lands. Scouts, youth groups, civic clubs, families and individuals are encouraged to participate.

For their efforts, volunteers can stay in Pine Meadows Campground for free the night of the event. Volunteers will also receive a pass, which is good for free entry any day during the next year at public land sites managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

"During this event, we will replace some of the vegetation that was damaged in the severe snow storm that occurred this past winter,” said Portland District park ranger Christie Johnson. “We have 100 trees and shrubs to plant, so we are looking for a lot of volunteers to help us.”

The event runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Pine Meadows Campground. Volunteers will receive a free lunch.  All volunteers should wear sturdy closed-toe shoes and long pants. Gloves, tools, and drinking water will be available. The campground is at 75166 Cottage Grove Reservoir Road, Cottage Grove, Oregon.

Volunteers should register no later than Sept. 20 by contacting the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers park ranger office at (541) 942-5631. For more information about National Public Lands Day, go to http://www.publiclandsday.org/.

Cottage Grove Dam and Reservoir is one of 13 dam and reservoir projects operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the Willamette River drainage system.  Each dam contributes to a water resource plan designed to provide flood risk management, power generation, irrigation, water quality improvement, fish and wildlife habitat and recreation on the Willamette River and many of its tributaries.