LIVERMORE FALLS – A group of teenagers set to work Thursday to cut down and remove an invasive species of plant along the banks of the Androscoggin River.

Campers at the Maine Conservation Camp in Bryant Pond were helping Debi Davidson, president of the Maine chapter of the Izaak Walton League in Livermore Falls, to make a river view in back of the Livermore Falls Municipal Building.

“Oriental bittersweet is an invasive species of plant that wraps around trees and doesn’t let any sunlight in,” said Chelsea Brown, 14, of Rome.

Kendra Vallee, 14, of Turner said she and Brown were also killing poison ivy by spraying it with cedar vinegar.

Assisting Davidson, Vallee and Brown in the environmental venture were Sarah Niemic, 14, of Milo; Nicole Bellerose, 14, of Troy; Tobias Farnsworth, 15, of Lewiston; and camp counselor Karen Introne.

The teens were doing a community service project to help the environment, Brown and Niemic said.

“We’re just glad to help,” Vallee said.

The teenagers were clipping the green vines and making a pile.

A group of Livermore Falls High School students had chopped off some of the thick vines during the school year, which now had turned brown and dried up, Davidson said.

The invasive species overtakes the natural species and kills it, she said.

As the teenagers worked, Davidson made sure they followed procedures to keep the base of the riverbank stable.

Davidson plans to be down on the riverbank every Thursday, weather permitting, to keep the project going. She’s hoping community members will help with the project. If interested in participating, people may call Davidson at 897-6295.

One of the things noted in a study for the revitalization of downtown Livermore Falls was to increase awareness of the river views.

The teenagers said they didn’t mind working in the damp, buggy, vegetated area because they want to preserve the environment for future generations.

They do it basically so “we can help preserve the wise uses of the natural resources,” Niemic said.

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