Removing invasive species in the south of the Netherlands
Description: For the first time, ‘Het Limburgs Landschap’-an NGO committed to the preservation of the natural and cultural heritage in Limburg- in cooperation with VIA:SCI Netherlands are organising a work camp in the dutch southern province of Limburg. The workcamp will be located in Cottessen, where the river Geul flows from Belgium into the Netherlands, a protected area included in the EU’s Natura2000 list (https://www.natura2000.nl/).
Type of Work: The volunteers will help reverse the damage caused by a big flood in 2022 when seeds of harmful exotic species spread around the area. This will be achieved by carefully removing the harmful species manually.
Additionally, to raise awareness and facilitate exchange, local volunteers will join in for a few days, and there will be an ‘action day’ organized by the cross-border collaboration on invasive exotic species, with upstream municipalities and managers participating, including the Municipality of Raeren and Aachen.
Study Theme: Invasive exotic species pose a threat to biodiversity worldwide. Through competition, predation, or the transmission of diseases, they have negative effects on species and habitats that naturally belong in that area. This application focuses on the control of the invasive exotic ‘Giant Hogweed’, also known as Impatiens Glandulifera or Himalayan Balsam, in the Geul Valley.
Accommodation: The group of international volunteers will stay at the Paradijsvogel in Cottessen, where they can cook for themselves and is within walking distance of the project sites.
Camp Photographs
