East Wiltshire students design and develop new trail on school grounds

A class of Grade 9 students at East Wiltshire Intermediate has created a new trail on their school property.

The students planted 200 treeswith the help of the Cornwall and Area Watershed Group, and the goal is to create more biodiversity in the area as well as adding shade for cross-country runners at the school.

Andi-Lee Reardon is one of the students who participated in the project, and she says students really took charge on this project together.

"It's kind of like a legacy project for us, like the graduating Grade 9French class, and it's really awesome because to think in 20 yearsif we ever come back here and take a walk through the trail to think 'Oh, me and Jane, we designed that, like we picked where the trees are going to go,'" she said.

"We helped plant all these. And whenever we see all the trees all grown up and everything, I think it'll be really awesome."

Jane Nordquistsaid she loved working on the project and having many students involved with bringing theprojectto life.

One of the top concerns was being able to provide shade to specific areas onschool grounds, to give students and trail walkers a break from the sun.

"It will give everyone a place to go so it's not just all open," she said.

Her favourite part of the project, she said, was taking spray paint with Reardon and going through deciding where the trail was going to go.

"So we basically designed the trail. That was really fun," she said. "I think it worked out great, there's still some work to do but in the amount of time we had we did a lot of work. It looks great."

The students have been working on the trail project for months.

Hannah MacLeanwith the watershed group said both students and staff were eager to work on the project. She's excited to be part of the project and invited people to check out the trail and the trees.

"We're really happy to be part of the project, come out and take a look," she said. "Anyone can just walk through it."

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