Put on your work gloves and rubber boots and join a volunteer effort to clean up Port Susan Bay on August 8.

The Nature Conservancy, a global organization working to protect ecologically important lands and waters, is encouraging locals to heed President Obama's United We Serve initiative by helping remove invasive spartina from the local reserve.

On Saturday, August 8, volunteers are invited to a work party at the Conservancy's Port Susan Bay Preserve, a 4,122-acre area in Snohomish County where the Stillaguamish River empties into the bay, creating a biologically rich area of saltwater marshes and tidal mudflats. The work, scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., will involve a short boat ride to a sandy area where spartina seedlings can easily be pulled by hand.

Bending and pulling to get the plants out of the soil is required, as well as sure footing getting in and out of the boat. Volunteers should be able to work in muddy and wet conditions.

For more information and to sign up for the work party, contact Barbara French at bfrench@tnc.org or (206) 343-4345 ext. 361.

For other volunteer opportunities with The Nature Conservancy, visit www.nature.org/Washington and look for the heading "Volunteer."

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