Students from five schools in Dartmouth, Fall River, and Westport, MA, recently participated in a field study in which they explored the dunes at Cherry & Webb Beach in Westport. This study was done in partnership with the Westport River Watershed Alliance as part of its Dune Restoration Project (an initiative of the Alliance’s Watershed Education Program).
In their study, students visited four different teaching stations in which they learned about the unique plants of the dune ecosystem and planted approximately 2,000 American beach grass seedlings in an ongoing effort to restore an eroded section of the dunes. Participants were able to observe the results of the work classes did in year’s past. The goal of the project is to teach students natural science and to build a sense of stewardship among the students for the special natural communities found in Westport.