MNPS Monthly Program: Wild Rice Restoration in the Anacostia River with Jorge Bogantes Montero

Speaker:  Jorge Bogantes Montero

YOU MUST REGISTER IN ORDER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK

Zoom opens at 7:00PM for pre-program board update and member Q&A. Presentations begin at 7:30PM and generally run until 8:45PM. 

The Anacostia River once had extensive tidal emergent wetlands dominated by Wild Rice (Zizania aquatica), an essential plant in this aquatic ecosystem. Centuries of habitat destruction and neglect deeply changed the riparian landscape of this river in the nation’s capital. For more than two decades, the Anacostia Watershed Society (AWS) has embarked on an ecosystem restoration journey to try to recover these amazing tidal marshlands, but in a very different River in the 21st century. Since 2020, wild rice has been thriving and even expanding in acreage as a result of our restoration efforts in what is a true restoration success story. Every summer, with the blooming of wild rice and more wildlife sightings, we grow more hopeful and treasure the recovery of a riverine ecosystem in the middle of a major city.

Jorge Bogantes Montero is a Natural Resources Specialist at the Anacostia Watershed Society in Bladensburg, MD. He leads ecological restoration efforts on public parklands in the Anacostia River watershed (in both DC and MD), including wetland restoration, tree plantings, meadow creation, SAV propagation, mussel propagation, wildlife monitoring, and invasive plant management. Mr. Bogantes Montero has a Bachelor's degree in Natural Resource Management and Protection from the Universidad Estatal a Distancia in San Jose, Costa Rica, his native country. Before moving to the U.S., Jorge worked in his country in issues related to tropical biodiversity conservation.

The program is free and open to the public.

We can accommodate the first 300 people who enter the Zoom meeting at the meeting time. After you register, you will receive a registration confirmation email with a link to the Zoom meeting. Registering does not guarantee a space in the Zoom meeting. 

This will be recorded and available on our Webinars page.

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