Community Joins Forces For Environment

By MADDY VITALE Ordinarily, standing or sitting on dunes would not be allowed or advised since the sand piles create that natural barrier between the ocean and properties during coastal storms. But on Saturday, environmentalists were together atop the dunes at 57th Street with a specific purpose to create an even stronger barrier against Mother Nature’s wrath, by planting beach plums. About seven members of the Ocean City High School Environmental Club and members of the city’s Environmental Commission and other members of the community got together to plant the beach plums in the dunes. Each equipped with a trowel or shovel and a bucket, they quickly went to work. All of the participants wore masks and observed social distancing guidelines as safeguards during the pandemic. For students Abby Armstrong and Daniella DiCicco, both 16 and of Upper Township, they said that it felt good to help the environment. Abby wants to pursue a career in environmental studies, while Daniella wants to go into the medical field. Environmental Club members gear up to start planting. But both of the friends and fellow club members said there is nothing more rewarding than being out in nature and helping preserve it. “I am very happy to be here. It is a nice feeling,” Abby explained. “I feel like we are lucky because we get to live near the beach, study it and help it.” Daniella added that a dune planting is a great opportunity for the students to study nature. “I’m going into the medical field, but it is great to be passionate about nature. It is important to protect nature,” she said. “A lot of other problems seem miniscule to this. If you don’t protect nature, nothing else seems as important.” Freshman Joshua Heng, 14, said he liked being a part of the Environmental Club, along with his sisters Izzy and Olivia Heng, along with other family members. “It is good to help the environment and the residents of Ocean City,” Joshua said. Alma George, owner of Jalma Farms in Ocean View, explains how to plant beach plums with Environmental Commission Chairman Rick Bernardini at left. Environmental Commission Chairman Rick Bernardini and his wife, Joanne, attended the plantings to help out. “We had to wait to hold this event,” Rick Bernardini noted of it being canceled due to COVID gathering restrictions last year. “This event is important for the environment and great for the kids.” Bernardini said the event wouldn’t be possible without the gracious donation of 75 beach plums for planting and also the guidance from Alma George, owner of Jalma Farms in Ocean View. George explained the importance of protecting the dunes and how dune grass alone is not enough to fortify the dunes. She also detailed how to properly plant the beach plums. She said that they should be spaced about 10 feet apart and deep in the sand and soil because of the long roots. Before George gave the environmentally conscious team of volunteers the go-ahead to start planting, she said, “It means a lot to see youths out there helping the environment. Being environmental stewards is what it is about. When the beach plums mature they will help the dunes provide a protective barrier against coastal storms.