BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (PIX11) -- It's been more than two years since a park in Somerset County was damaged by Hurricane Ida, but local Girl Scouts are doing something about it.
"I'm very into trying to help solve problems with global warming and deforestation, and the best place to start with that is locally," said Phoebe, who is a Girl Scout in Montgomery. "I can really sympathize with anyone who has known someone or is someone who was affected by Hurricane Ida."
"There were a number of areas heavily, heavily damaged during Hurricane Ida," said Doug Vornlocker of the Somerset County Park Commission.
As families, homes, and communities in the County continue to recover from the deadly storm, so does Bridgewater's Duke Island Park. The powerful rising waters of the Raritan River, coupled with the infestation of an invasive beetle known as the Emerald Ash Borer, left the riverbank devastated.
But nature is healing; thanks to a $10,000 grant from New Jersey American Water, more than a hundred native trees have been planted along the riverbank, many of them by Girl Scouts and Brownies from Troops in Montgomery, Franklin, and Branchburg.
"Over time the trees will grow and protect not only the riverbank, but the park," said Vornlocker. "We're going to see some really positive effects within the next 5 years, but in the 10 to 15 years we'll get the results that we're looking for."
Parks officials say the trees will re-create the natural buffer zone that runs alongside the water, securing the soil and filtering any flood debris. It's just one way Girl Scouts like Phoebe are giving back to their communities.
"It was really nice knowing that it was going to be for a really good cause that could help a lot of generations in the future," said Phoebe.
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