The Department of Environmental Resources Management is responsible for the protection, preservation, enhancement and management of Palm Beach County's natural resources. Facing the daunting task of covering the environmental needs of Florida's largest and most populous county, the Department recognized the need for developing strong community support through its volunteer program. Since 1987, volunteers have provided over 30,000 hours of service to the Department's programs. From Lake Okeechobee to the Atlantic Ocean, our volunteers help shape South Florida's environmental future. Are you ready to lend a hand?
Volunteers participate in "hands-on" environmental projects such as native plantings, clean-ups, exotic plant removal, dune restoration, and nursery maintenance. Projects typically last three hours and are scheduled on a monthly basis. The projects are listed on Volunteer Opportunity flyers which are distributed every two months. This program requires no training or long-term commitment and provides short-term projects for busy individuals who want to make a difference in their community. Groups can also take advantage of this program. A special work project can be designed for their members at a date, time, and location of their choosing. For more information or to be added to the Volunteer Opportunity flyer email list, contact Ann Mathews at
amathews@co.palm-beach.fl.us.
Volunteer stewards assist Department staff in managing local natural areas. Responsibilities include monitoring and maintaining trails, reporting damage, recording animal and plant observations, and developing a Natural Area Watch Group. Stewards receive handbooks and training opportunities are available throughout the year. This program requires dedicated volunteers that can work several hours each week for at least one year. You can download the
Stewardship Application here 
.
Site inspection forms are now available online:
Adopters provide services and resources for the restoration and maintenance of a local natural area. This may include one or more of the following: labor, equipment, funding, and publicity. The adopting organization participates in at least four work days each year. Businesses and schools are encouraged to join this program. For more information contact Ann Mathews at (561) 233-2426 or
amathews@co.palm-beach.fl.us.
Do you want to know when the next natural area is opened, how the sea turtle nesting numbers are stacking up, or what invasive exotic plant is causing problems for land managers? You can find the answers to these questions in the Department's quarterly "Environmental Times" newsletter. Each issue contains articles on programs such as shoreline enhancement, water resources protection, and habitat restoration. PDF files of each edition can be found
here.
Pictured here are volunteers from M-Fuge at the Seacrest Scrub Natural Area, a 54-acre scrub wilderness surrounded by urban development. The natural area is home to gopher tortoises, pricklypear cactus, and pileated woodpeckers. The volunteers assisted Department staff with the construction of an irrigation line to distribute water to recently planted sand pine seedlings. They also put mulch around the seedlings to reduce weeds and conserve water. Even though a nasty rainstorm cut the project short, the volunteers managed to complete 90% of the project.
Check out ERM's Volunteers in Action
January 2009-June 2009 Volunteer Report
Coastal Resources