For years, many people have put their trees on the curb with the understanding that they will be used to help restore land in Bayou Savage.
But this year, there is a new option, for those whose trees are still waiting for pickup. Some Lower 9th Ward organizations are collecting trees to build up the shoreline along the Florida Avenue edge of the Bayou Bienvenue wetland triangle.
“Even if we get 100 trees, it will be great,” said Arthur Johnson, who heads the Lower 9th Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development, which owns several watery lots along the shoreline there. The wetlands are the legacy of developers who sold lots in that area decades ago, with hopes that the bayou would be drained and turned into a residential area.
Once placed in Bayou Bienvenue, the trees will decay, creating a stronger edge to the rapidly eroding bank of the bayou, Johnson said. “Trees also have seeds and so new plants might grow out of them, further building up the shoreline.”
The project is sponsored by the Lower 9th Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development, Common Ground and Glass Half Full. Locally, drop-sites include:
- Common Ground Relief, 1500 Deslonde St.
- CSED, 1500 Lamanche St.
- Snake & Jakes bar, 1200 Hilary St.
- Glass Half Full, 3935 Louisa St. (only available Monday and Wednesday between 9 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.)