Volunteer Events

Please join Bassett Creek Volunteers for the fall buckthorn removal in Bassett's Creek Park! Volunteers will cut, pull and haul buckthorn to make way for native plants, learn about the creek watershed, and celebrate afterwards outdoors at Utepils.

All are welcome. This is a family-friendly event with work suitable for all ages. No experience is needed.

Snacks and beverages provided at the event. All participants will receive a Utepils drink ticket to be used afterwards (tickets can be used for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages).

Gores Pool Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a 6,459-acre complex of floodplain forest, marshland and backwater along the Mississippi River and Vermillion River Bottoms in Hastings. The WMA is known for its outstanding biodiversity, and overall constitutes one of the largest expanses of floodplain native plant communities in southeast Minnesota. It is also one of the top four sites in the state for rare forest birds, including cerulean warblers and red-shouldered hawks.

This event has reached maximum capacity. Read below for instructions to sign up for the waitlist, and we will contact you if anyone cancels their spot for this event. Or, see our full event calendar to choose a different volunteer opportunity.

--

FMR is proud to be a partner for the 2021 Mississippi River Plastic Pollution Initiative. Led by the Mississippi River Cities & Towns Initiative (MRCTI), the United Nations Environment Programme, National Geographic Society and the University of Georgia, this initiative will quantify and address plastic pollution along the Mississippi.

This event has reached maximum capacity. Read below for instructions to sign up for the waitlist, and we will contact you if anyone cancels their spot for this event. Or, see our full event calendar to choose a different volunteer opportunity.

--

What's one of the simplest, high-impact ways to save water and help protect our watershed? Using a rain barrel.

Register to claim a rain barrel and conversion kit for just $35! Pick up you barrel from the Wellstone Center in St. Paul on August 24. Then, we'll walk you through assembling and installing your barrel at our virtual workshop on August 25. Learn more and register here >

Join us for a Halloween brush haul at the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA) Farm. Though we haven't worked at this exact spot before, FMR partners with the DNR to restore the South Branch Vermillion River Aquatic Management Area (AMA), which shares a border with this site.

Rain gardens are one way for homeowners to beautify their yard while having a direct impact on the river. Rain gardens are designed to catch rainwater runoff, helping prevent erosion and filtering pollutants. They also provide wildlife habitat, attract pollinators and are a way to bring in beautiful plants and wildflowers to your yard.