Conservation Association Releases August Program Schedule

COOPERSTOWN—Otsego County Conservation Association’s summer programming continues with invasive species pulls, river paddles, nature walks, and more.

On August 7, OCCA and Catskill Regional Invasive Species Partnership teamed up for the iSPY Invasive Species paddle on the Susquehanna River. This program will be repeated on September 7—it is an easy paddle down river with stops to identify and learn about some of the key invasive species that impact the river and its shoreline.

OCCA is seeking volunteers to pull water chestnut, a highly invasive aquatic plant, from Goodyear Lake near the Portlandville Fishing Access Site. Sessions are planned for Saturday, August 10 and Saturday, August 24 from 9 a.m. to noon, and volunteers should expect to get a little wet and muddy. OCCA has canoes available for those who need them.

Another invasive species event, Chop & Cheese, is being held on Wednesday, August 21 from 6-8 p.m. at Mohican Farm in Springfield. Volunteers will learn a little bit about Japanese knotweed and will spend some time chopping, cutting and digging up this highly invasive plant, and then be rewarded with light refreshments in Mohican Farm’s garden. Some tools will be available, though volunteers may also wish to bring their own clippers, loppers or work gloves.

The Family Nature Walk series continues on Friday, August 23 at 1 p.m. Shelby MacLeish leads this walk through the varied habitats of the Otsego Land Trust’s Parslow Road Conservation Area, with an emphasis on recognizing local flora and fauna.

All programs are free, but registration is required. For more detailed information about the programs, including meeting locations and how to register, visit www.occainfo.org/calendar or contact OCCA at (607) 547-4488.