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By Norine Rowe
UMConnection Correspondent

Sowing beach grasses now for the future health of the Chesapeake Bay provided a lesson in environmental stewardship for 187 local students who participated in a recent ecology field trip to the West River United Methodist Center, located on a scenic tributary of the bay.

The students? grass-planting activity was part of the Living Shoreline Project at the West River campground near Churchton. Andy Thornton, director of the center, explained that this is a joint effort of many persons and organizations to replace an existing, deteriorated bulkhead shoreline along 175 feet of the West River property.

The new design will create a friendly habitat for aquatic life while maintaining shoreline protection from erosion.

Taking part in the 'Bay Grasses in Classes' program on May 25 were students from Tracey?s Elementary, Deale Elementary and Edgewater Elementary schools. This hands-on learning program was an effort of Anne Arundel County Public Schools.

The project began last fall, explained Dan Somers, coordinator of the Bay Grasses in Classes program, when outdoor educators talked with students about the important role bay grasses play in providing food and shelter for every living organism in the Chesapeake Bay.

Students learned how soil erosion and dirt washing into the bay cloud the water and block sunlight from bay grasses, which in turn kills them. They also learned how shoreline grasses help control sediment and prevent soil erosion.

Starting with just a handful of grasses, the students made cuttings and propagated the grasses in their classrooms. They brought the home-grown grasses to the West River Retreat Center on May 25.

Using submerged aquatic vegetation planters, they planted bay grasses in the water to help clean and filter the water and to provide habitat. With small shovels, they also planted shoreline or beach grasses to help keep sediment from eroding into the water. And, as part of their hands-on ecology lesson, the students practiced using a seine net to collect aquatic specimens so they could see the kinds of bay life that will benefit from their grass-planting efforts.

Planning, design and administrative support for the project is provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Administration, Annapolis office. Funding of $37,590 comes from a grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Campbell Foundation. The West River United Methodist Center also provided $1,210 in funds toward the project, as well as supplies and labor. The Jefferson UMC youth group also assisted.