Volunteer Opportunities in Natural Resource Management

Habitat Restoration Restoring our park natural areas to health and diversity is a great way to contribute to Fairfax County Parks. Check out the Invasive Management Area Program for sites where we are removing invasive plants. Spring and fall are the best times to plant the forests of tomorrow. We partner with the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services to restore buffer along streams, and many local non-profit organizations plant trees both on parkland and in neighborhoods. Help maintain previously planted trees! Even after they go into the ground, tree seedlings need care for as many as five years. Here's a list of parks that have seedlings that could use Tree Keepers. Select a park to volunteer! VOLUNTEER TO BE A TREE KEEPER Select a park Accotink Creek Stream Valley Park Canterbury Woods Park Carney Park Difficult Run Stream Valley Park Ellanor C. Lawrence Park Flag Run Flatlick Run Stream Valley Park Folkstone Follylick Stream Valley Park Frying Pan Farm Park Greendale Golf Course Hidden Pond Lake Fairfax Park Laurel Hill Luria Park Mason District Park Middleridge Park Pinecrest Pleasant Hill Park Poplar Tree Park Rocky Run Stream Valley Park Roundtree Park Rutherford Park The Turner Farm Waverly Park Other Please post your comments, questions below: I'd like to volunteer as a Tree Keeper... Name: Telephone: Email: Our Nature Centers are looking for volunteers to maintain and interpret the habitats around the buildings.

Stream Monitoring Interested in a citizen science opportunity? The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District trains volunteers to become certified stream monitors. Riverbend Park monitors Clark's Branch and Scott's Run in the northeastern portion of the county. Inventories and Monitoring Do you have a field of expertise? Can you lend a hand to adaptive management programs? - Send us an email. Certain sites have opportunities available throughout the year to inventory and monitor natural resources like beaver, native plants and dragonflies. Watershed Cleanups Need service hours for a school project? Are you unable to commit to a long-term volunteer opportunity? The Park Authority supports two watershed cleanups every year, and you can earn hours by participating in a stream cleanup at any time. Contact the Park Operations Division at 703-324-8594 to learn how. Other Volunteer Opportunities The Park Authority has lots of opportunities to fit your interests, talents and availability, whether it's supporting resource management or another of our activities.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the advantages of working with the Park Authority instead of by myself?

The Park Authority manages parkland on behalf of all park visitors in accordance with county, state and federal policies, regulations and laws. Experienced park staff help volunteers create a fun, safe, effective volunteer program that meets park needs. Park staff can often offer logistical support that volunteers don't have ready access to.

I want to remove invasive plants in my local park but it's not on the list. How can I help with this important task?

The Invasive Management Area (IMA) program offers about 40 different opportunities for volunteers to become involved in an invasive plant management effort. Although we know that invasive plants are in more parks than the 40 offered, effective removal of invasive plants requires a concentrated effort over a period of several years to be successful. The IMA program allows for that longer-term commitment, training, tools and logistical support in a way that cannot be provided for every park at this time. New parks are added to IMA every spring, so feel free to nominate your park as an IMA site.

Whom do I contact?

• By contacting staff at a park building, like a nature center or RECenter. Staff inside the building will help determine who can help you outside the building.
• By contacting the Park Operations Division 703-324-8594. They'll direct you to the right volunteer coordinator for your project.
• By contacting the Resource Management Division Volunteer Coordinator at 703-324-8750.

There are some volunteer projects that just don't work. Here are some reasons why.

• The project is not consistent with the park's mission. Many of our parks are master planned, a review process that creates an overall view of how the parkland should be used (Check the Master Plan Archives for details. These master plans are developed by staff and the Park Board with input from the public, including local residents.
• The project is too large. Proposals that have a large scope, either requiring heavy equipment and/or requiring federal permits due to their location in or near a water body, may require resources that have not been budgeted and cannot be accommodated in the schedule. We also have turned down large groups when a suitable project is not available. On occasion, we can accommodate groups of up to 200; however, these projects need careful advanced planning in excess of three months.
• There is no staff available to oversee the project. Projects that require several site meetings, training, permits and multiple staff on hand to be successful may not be able to be accommodated in the workplan. Volunteer projects that require a lot of human resources must be prioritized with work that is already underway. If your project is not selected, remember that park employees manage hundreds of volunteer projects a year and are always looking for help to complete those projects.
• Doing something one time likely won't work. For example, many of the most effective techniques to remove invasive plants work only with repeated cutting of the above-ground vegetation. A one-time workday will not have a lasting effect on the non-native vegetation, and without committed volunteers who will come back repeatedly, the project will not be sustainable. We are interested in creating lasting projects that will have a positive effect on parkland for years to come.
• Site may contain a sensitive resource. Protection of sensitive resources may require that a project be carried out by professional or specially-trained consultants or staff.