ASTORIA, Ore. -- A nonprofit hopes to restore habitats along the Columbia River, weeding out invasive plants along the way.
That's the goal of the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership. They say plants like scotch broom and Himalayan blackberry do too well in our climate and it's pushing out natural sources of food for wildlife.
As part of their outreach, they go into classrooms up and down the Columbia River teaching students about how to protect those natural habitats.
"I think the goal is regionally everybody understand the issues and feel that they can do something to help the river," said Andy Bauer, an environmental educator.
Fourth graders with Lewis and Clark Elementary School in Astoria took a field trip to Coffenbury Lake at Fort Stevens State Park this week to pull out scotch broom. Their teacher says it fits into their lesson plans, learning about native and non-native species and animal adaptations.
While the group gets their word out, the kids get a hands-on lesson in protecting nature.
"It's really fun actually. I like cutting them because I know I'm helping the environment," said 4th grader Ary Rath.