Marathon Petroleum Corporation | The Incredible Power of Trees in Southwest Detroit

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Many know it as “Motor City.” Detroit, Michigan, is widely held as a center of industry, a metropolitan area that hosts various manufacturing and processing facilities in addition to its automotive exports. Over time, this heavily concentrated industrialization has led to severe legacy impacts on the environment and the human communities inhabiting the area.

Using the power of trees, Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) is working to alleviate these environmental and health concerns. The Boynton and Oakwood Heights neighborhoods of Detroit are two areas in the southwestern corner of the city that have been especially impacted. Their locations near MPC’s Detroit refinery and the River Rouge place these neighborhoods at the intersection of high industrialization and high ecological importance, making them key areas of investment.

With the ultimate goal of reestablishing northern hardwood and flatwood forests, MPC conducted an initial planting in the Boynton and Oakwood Heights area in 2015. Since then, they’ve expanded the area to more than 18 acres, encompassing over 100 species of trees and plants in the area now known as Marathon Gardens.

The benefits of this urban forest are myriad, from human health to water quality to wildlife usage. Marathon Gardens’ placement creates a vegetated buffer between operations and residents, thus helping to filter particulate matter, mitigate high winds and even reduce noise. The canopy created by the forest reduces the urban heat island effect, which can increase daytime temperatures by up to 7° Fahrenheit. In order to install trees in this area, MPC removed impervious surfaces like sidewalks, thereby improving the quality of the stormwater runoff that eventually enters the nearby Rouge River, ultimately benefitting the greater watershed.

And of course, Marathon Gardens has the added benefit of supporting wildlife. Twenty-five bluebird boxes were installed in 2019, and monitoring showed that 12 of the boxes housed completed nests. In 2023 and 2023, the various wildlife species observed in the forest habitat included beavers, turkeys, painted turtle, cottontail rabbits and monarch butterflies.

Urban resilience was an important factor in the trees chosen to ensure that the forest flourishes in this environment. Species like balsam fir, eastern red cedar, white spruce and Kentucky coffeetree fill the forest — and when local residents mentioned interest in fruit trees, MPC added several to the site, including persimmon, paw paw and serviceberry.

Marathon Gardens had a strong start, and MPC plans to continue maintaining and supporting its growth, working with WHC to facilitate tree selection and community involvement in plantings. Partnerships with local conservation organizations like Friends of the Rouge and Greening of Detroit build meaningful connections MPC’s future goals include connecting Marathon Gardens to a larger greenway trail called the Iron Bell Trail in Southwest Detroit, thus creating a green corridor through heavy industry.

Forestry projects like these continue to highlight the capabilities of trees — showing that, even in an urban area, nature can coexist with industry.

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Constellation | Exceeding Requirements to Keep Bats Safe and Undisturbed

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At first glance, the Indiana bat might evoke a different creature entirely — this mammal’s small ears are not unlike those of a rodent, which explains why the first part of its scientific name translates to “mouse ears.” While the species was first sighted in a cave in Indiana, these bats are found throughout the eastern and midwestern United States, but unfortunately, have been listed as federally endangered since the 1960s due to habitat loss and human disturbances. Energy supplier Constellation’s Criterion Wind bat project is working to address both of these concerns.

Operated by Criterion Power Partners (CPP) and located in Oakland, Maryland, Criterion Wind houses 28 wind turbines across 117 acres. Beginning in 2015, CPP entered into a conservation agreement with the Mountaineer Chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America, a national conservation organization, to go above and beyond required efforts to mitigate wind farm impacts on bat populations.

CPP consulted with Bat Conservation International, who determined that the Izaak Walton Cave in Randolph County, West Virginia, would be a suitable location to protect Indiana bats as well as little brown bats, northern long-eared bats and more. A social species, Indiana bats hibernate through the winter in large colonies, requiring specific cave conditions like low, stable temperatures and an absence of drafts. These specific needs, along with shrinking natural habitats due to development, leave them with relatively few options; in 2019, a majority of the Indiana bat population hibernated in four sites across three states.

In addition to the lack of available habitat, human disturbances also have a detrimental impact on bats. Izaak Walton Cave is a well-known area that was previously easy for people to access, but when humans enter a bat hibernaculum, the noises and disturbances create the risk of bats abandoning the location entirely. With this information in mind, CPP developed a solution that allows bats to freely access the cave while restricting human entry: bat gates.

These metal structures were installed at several cave entrances to minimize unauthorized human entry to the caves, serving the added benefits of reducing the human-facilitated introduction of white-nose syndrome (WNS). This disease, caused by a fungus that grows on bats’ noses, impacts bats around the world by triggering them to wake up during hibernation, use up their fat reserves and ultimately starve. As there is currently no cure for WNS, prevention is the best course of action, so part of CPP’s monitoring efforts at the cave include looking for indications of WNS such as fungus on the cave’s surfaces or any abnormal bat behavior.

The cave is adjacent to the Monongahela National Forest, an ecosystem that also plays a large role in bat lifecycles. “A land use management plan protects the forest habitat for foraging, roosting, swarming and breeding cycles for multiple bat species, many of which are currently listed as endangered,” explained Kelly Stein, Sr. Environmental Program Manager – Natural Resources with Constellation. This forest management plan includes annual plant surveys to document the species present, ensuring that there is high-quality, native vegetation to support bats’ foraging and roosting needs when they are not hibernating.

For Criterion Wind, mitigation regulations were a starting point for an impactful project. These efforts go above and beyond the requirements in several ways: by focusing on measures that impact the greater population of Indiana bats and including other bat species in their efforts. “Although your conservation project may be initiated through a regulatory obligation for mitigation,” said Stein, “it can exceed requirements and result in a high-value benefit for a species.” For Stein, the most rewarding aspects of this project have been the opportunity for Constellation to align its efforts with those of organizations like the Izaak Walton League, the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to contribute to the recovery of endangered bat species.

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ExxonMobil | When Girl Scouts and Avian Projects Join Forces, Everyone Wins

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The wildlife team at ExxonMobil’s Joliet Refinery had a request: Though they had been diligently maintaining and monitoring nesting structures to support native ducks at the Channahon, Illinois, site since 2015, pandemic-related stressors in 2021 created heavier work hours than usual. With multiple active conservation projects taking place across the site’s 146 acres, members of the wildlife team needed assistance monitoring the bird boxes.  

Meanwhile, a local Girl Scout troop was searching for a way to get involved in wildlife projects. Specifically, they were seeking outdoor activities that could help their members achieve a citizen/community science badge. As luck would have it, Mechanical Availability Lead and member of the bird team at Joliet Refinery Kate Shafer also happened to be the leader of the Girl Scout troop in question — and she began to coordinate a solution that would meet both of these needs.  

“During the pandemic, our Girl Scouts were looking for a program outside,” said Shafer, “and taking over monitoring of the birds and ducks was the perfect fit.” To meet the requirements of the Junior Citizen Scientist Journey badge, the Girl Scouts had to conduct research related to citizen/community science initiatives, so engaging the efforts of the Girl Scout troop in monitoring at Joliet Refinery ensured reciprocal benefits for both organizations. 

To gain some background information on the project, the Girl Scouts attended a learning session before they began monitoring. ExxonMobil staff educated the youth on the differences between habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation, and through this session, the Scouts learned why the duck boxes had been installed on-site and the importance of these supplemental nesting resources. 

The Girl Scouts were then apprised of Joliet’s monitoring protocol and provided the appropriate resources — from cameras and selfie sticks to gloves and bug spray — to conduct routine monitoring during the nesting season. One of the challenges of the project was accommodating the monitoring sessions in all parties’ busy schedules. “We’ve worked to identify smaller time increment volunteer opportunities,” Shafer said. While time was of the essence, it was also important to Joliet that the Girl Scouts have the opportunity to learn. “We know just to monitor the ducks and birds, an adult could do it faster — but we see the value of engaging the community to share our property.” 

After the monitoring sessions were complete, the Girl Scouts analyzed the data, hypothesizing about why some boxes were more successful than others. “Making data-based decisions is fundamental to STEM,” explained Shafer. “Our Girl Scouts collected data on nesting, then used that data to drive locations of additional boxes.” Based on monitoring data from the Girl Scouts, Joliet installed four additional wooden boxes and redistributed the PVC boxes so that there was only one box per pole. The troop even had the opportunity to construct several new boxes themselves. 

Through this collaboration, both the Girl Scouts and the Joliet wildlife team benefited. The monitoring opportunity met a community need in the form of hands-on STEM education (not to mention the prospect of earning a Girl Scout badge), while the data collected by the Girl Scouts helped to better inform ExxonMobil’s conservation efforts. For programs implementing a youth engagement component, Shafer recommends developing programs that are modeled after existing requirements, such as Girl Scout badges or Cub Scout adventures. “There are always interested kids in these programs, and it is less work for employees to develop and lead,” she said. “Many Scout leaders are looking for wildlife-related programming and would welcome an organization offering the activity.” 

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Sibelco | Preserving a Unique Coastal Ecosystem in Brazil

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Located along the eastern coast of Brazil are several patches of Atlantic coast restinga, a coastal plain forest that often grows on ancient sand dunes. As such, the native vegetation found in this ecosystem is adapted to dry, nutrient-poor soils. Restinga plant life varies vastly — from low-lying bushes and shrubs to towering trees, and the ecosystem is home to several endemic wildlife populations like the pectoral antwren and Bruno’s casque-headed frog. Unfortunately, urban development has led to a 90% decrease of Atlantic coast restingas, which is why mineral solutions company Sibelco is working to restore and preserve this unique ecosystem.  

Sibelco’s Unidade Jaguaruna site, located in Santa Catarina, Brazil, is comprised of three silica quarries. The two main objectives of the Unidade Jaguaruna program are to protect the restinga ecosystem and maintain these preserved areas for wildlife. By focusing on four major tenets of habitat needs — food, water, shelter and landscape — Sibelco is supporting the reforestation of the restinga, ensuring water quality and food sources for wildlife and reconnecting forest fragments.  

One of the methods Sibelco uses to restore the restinga is nucleation, a process by which segments, or nuclei, of high plant diversity are established by planting various trees and plants of different ecological groups and successional phases in degraded areas. This serves to not only restore degraded areas, but also to reconnect forest fragments. Variation in pollination and dispersion of these plants means that fruits and flowers bloom at different times, consistently attracting both pollinators and seed dispersers.  

Removing invasive eucalyptus is another high priority for Sibelco. Eucalyptus was introduced in Brazil to serve as a source of fuel for locomotives and later in the manufacturing of paper. However, this invasive species has since expanded aggressively and is now considered one of the major drivers of deforestation in Brazil, as it prevents native trees from thriving and impacts soil health. Throughout Unidade Jaguaruna, Sibelco targets invasive eucalyptus trees for removal to allow native trees to flourish.   

Through monitoring, Sibelco recognized that the lack of natural tree shelter could be limiting the presence of bats that serve as vital seed dispersers. Fruit-eating bats play an important role in reforestation, particularly in degraded areas, as they disperse seeds across the landscape. As a temporary measure until the newly planted trees have reached maturation, Sibelco installed bat shelter boxes near water sources both in the existing forest fragments and in the recovery areas. Similarly, in an effort to support pollinators that will, in turn, support the proliferation of native plants, the team drilled holes in felled eucalyptus trunks to reuse them as solitary bee shelters.  

Sibelco performs consistent, rigorous monitoring of these restoration efforts to determine success. By conducting surveys of flora, fauna, avian species, mammals, herpetofauna and more, the team gains a broad understanding of the health of the entire ecosystem. When team members observe that an installed plant has died, they replace it with a new seedling to ensure that species’ success. Monitoring data has shown that, while the area is still in an early phase of regeneration, the conditions have already improved enough to allow for the arrival of new species. 

Because of this attention to detail and commitment to supporting species native to the restinga, Sibelco is helping to restore this important ecosystem.  

 

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Summit Materials | From Abandoned Sand Mine to Monarch Haven

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An integral element of a strong corporate conservation program is the ability to learn from and adapt to nature. By recognizing what is working, and by utilizing already-existing features to further conservation goals, corporate conservationists can bring to fruition a program that supports biodiversity. 

Construction materials company Summit Materials’ Cornejo Wildlife Project, located at Cornejo & Sons North Wichita Sand and Asphalt Plant 3 in Wichita, Kansas, is a prime example of a program achieving success by learning from nature. Originally an abandoned airport that was turned into a sand mine, the Cornejo Wildlife Project encompasses wetlands, landscaped gardens and a grassland, with efforts focused on supporting birds and pollinators and providing educational opportunities for employees and their families. 

As the Cornejo Wildlife Project is located near the Arkansas River Corridor Habitat, it is an ideal stopover location for migratory birds. Five bluebird nesting boxes were installed across two locations on-site, situated away from roads and site operations to reduce potential human interference. In addition to the nesting boxes, Cornejo & Sons also installed several brush piles to provide shelter as well as foraging areas for target bird species. 

One of the key conservation goals of the Cornejo Wildlife Project is the protection of pollinators, particularly migratory monarch butterflies, since the garden is located within the I-35 Monarch Highway. The site’s several gardens help support this goal, including a 200-square-foot pollinator garden containing milkweed, garden phlox and black-eyed Susan to provide resources for monarchs.  

“One major issue we ran into was getting water to our pollinator garden,” said Randy Roths, Community Outreach Director at Cornejo & Sons. “We tried many different methods to resolve this: rain collection barrels with a hose line, a water line from the lake that got filled with pond scum, soaker hose that kept getting stopped up, etc.” After learning from this trial-and-error period, the team found their winning option in an innovative solar-powered pump that transports water from the nearby pond into a sprinkler system to irrigate the garden. Beginning in early 2021, Cornejo & Sons also employed a no-pesticide policy in the pollinator garden, and in 2022, approximately 42 butterflies, bees, moths and wasps were observed throughout the garden. 

Additional gardens at the plant entrance were in place for many years when Cornejo & Sons recognized that this area represented another opportunity to provide wildlife habitat on-site. Beginning in April 2021, the team removed overgrown plants and added milkweed and catmint based on these plants’ previous success with attracting pollinators in other locations on-site. These choices proved successful in this garden as well, with catmint and blazing stars attracting both bees and butterflies. 

When the site was first purchased, a large berm along the southern end of the property separated the on-site quarry from a housing development. It was originally seeded with turfgrass, and Cornejo & Sons soon realized it could provide greater ecosystem services if it were seeded with pollinator-friendly plants instead. After over-seeding with several different wildflower mixes, the berm now hosts a variety of plants benefiting butterflies and bees, including purple prairie clover and yellow sweet clover. A no-mow policy ensures that these plants and the pollinators that depend on them can thrive. Just through visual observations alone, Cornejo & Sons could see the success of this garden, as the blooming flowers were buzzing with an estimated 5,000 individual bees. 

But it’s not only the wildlife that gets to enjoy the Cornejo Wildlife Project — summer interns, employees and their families can tour the site. Through these tours, they learn about how the pollinator garden provides resources for bee populations, how the bluebird nests create shelter and how the site’s wetlands and riverside grasslands supply a water source for wildlife. This project also creates opportunities for learners to get involved in the maintenance of the habitat, either through planting native wildflowers or collecting samples to test the water quality. Making these hands-on projects accessible and family-friendly was a critical element. “We implemented weekend workdays that incorporated people’s families,” said Roths. “That way, they wouldn’t sacrifice their time away from their families in order to help out the project.” 

When it comes to developing a successful conservation program, Roths emphasized the importance of looking to colleagues for support. “Ask for help,” he said. “You will be surprised in the interest and knowledge of other employees.” 

 

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Ashland | Responsibly Solving to Support a Thriving Habitat at a Former Landfill

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Ashland’s Old York Road site, a former landfill located in Burlington Township, New Jersey, comprises seven acres of grassland and has been actively managed for conservation since 2012. The site houses projects ranging from invasive species management to mammal monitoring to educational partnerships. Ashland’s conservation goals include monitoring and supporting native wildlife and incorporating native vegetation to reduce maintenance needs across the site. Through a partnership with Rutgers University, the company also facilitates hands-on learning opportunities for future conservation professionals.

Ashland’s commitment to environmental protection aligns with the Responsible Care® program, a global initiative developed by and for chemical companies. “Identifying opportunities to create conservation projects on environmental remediation sites aligns with Ashland’s global environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives and Responsible Care goals of improving the environmental and social impacts of the company’s operations on our communities,” explained Shannon Lloyd, remediation project manager at Ashland.

Old York Road plays host to various species of birds, bats, mammals and pollinators, with projects designed to attract and support these native species. The bird box project targets cavity-nesting songbirds, with predator guards ensuring that only avian species can access the boxes. Through weekly monitoring, employees found that 52 fledglings successfully graduated from the nesting boxes in 2020 and 2021, with the number of successful fledglings nearly doubling in 2021.

As white-nose syndrome has been documented in the state of New Jersey, Ashland’s solvers have aligned their bat project with the White-Nose Syndrome Response Team’s recommendations for supporting bat populations, such as providing shelter, food and water. In addition to box observations, Ashland also uses an ultrasonic microphone for monitoring purposes. Through echolocation surveys, the team has determined that there are five species of cave-dwelling bats in the area: big brown bats, little brown bats, red bats, hoary bats and silver haired bats.

To facilitate further species monitoring, Ashland has installed a wildlife camera trap annually since 2019 to record evidence of mammals such as white-tailed deer, racoons and red foxes. Two cameras are installed and deployed for five days during seasonal monitoring events. Nine species were identified using this camera, including the target species plus groundhogs, opossums and squirrels. Ashland also conducts pollinator monitoring of bumblebees, honeybees and butterflies, and in May 2021, 19 total pollinator species were observed.

Through a formal learning connection with Rutgers University, Ashland creates real-world educational experiences for local students that surpasses what is possible through classroom instruction alone. “Ashland has made a commitment to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education,” said Lloyd, “and partnering with students who gain hands-on field experience action supports that commitment.” This mutually beneficial partnership with Rutgers provides students the opportunity to apply their ecological expertise to the site’s projects by monitoring nest boxes and conducting wildlife and vegetation surveys, while Ashland receives useful data for monitoring and documentation. Through this project, students hone their skills of data collection and management, field observation, species identification and applied conservation. “There is a learning curve that varies each year,” explained Lora Sterner, senior associate environmental scientist, Kennedy Jenks Consultants, Inc. and program manager for Ashland’s WHC sites. “Preparing step-by-step procedures specific to each project is part of the programmatic approach and improves the consistency and quality of information used in preparing the certification documentation.”

The program at Old York Road also targets invasive species. The tree of heaven is an invasive tree in the area that grows quickly and outcompetes native plants for resources such as water and sunlight. They were first observed on-site in 2017 and were targeted for removal via mowing and cutting. Tree of heaven often serves as habitat for another invasive species, the spotted lanternfly, which was first seen on-site in 2020. The team has since targeted trees of heaven more heavily for removal, and the ongoing removal of these trees will help slow the growth of lanternfly populations.

As part of their remediation of the former landfill, the team at Ashland went above and beyond regulatory requirements by seeding the landfill cap with a native seed mix and developing a maintenance plan to support the growth and success of native plants. Thanks to a conservation easement, the remediation project is protected from any habitat loss or fragmentation that might occur due to development or reuse of the site.

Through partnerships, rigorous monitoring and a dedication to supporting native plants and animals, Ashland’s solvers have developed a thriving habitat.

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AstraZeneca | Engaging Employees to Conserve the Wetlands

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Eleven miles east of Boston, Massachusetts lies AstraZeneca’s Waltham site. This facility not only houses pharmaceutical research and development labs, but it’s also the home of the Boston BioHub, an incubator where healthcare start-ups can receive mentoring and support.  

Conservation work at the site originally began in 2008 as part of a mandated wetlands replacement project. The Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act required that the team install buffer zones and maintain the site to preserve the water quality of the neighboring Cambridge Reservoir. However, the AstraZeneca Waltham project team has gone above and beyond these requirements through their use of a Biodiversity Action Plan, the development of living shorelines along the wetlands and the addition of wildflowers and an apiary. 

Ultimately, the project team’s goal is to protect and enrich the 10 hectares of wetlands surrounding the Waltham site to boost biodiversity, protect wetland-dependent wildlife and maintain water quality to benefit nearby bodies of water such as the Cambridge Reservoir. The team employs what they call a ‘natural approach to conservation,’ which means they’ve managed the wetland habitat to the point where it essentially maintains itself, while employees continue to protect it from any adverse impacts of the site and monitor the health of the ecosystem. 

Maintenance practices reflect this natural approach. AstraZeneca uses an eco-friendly lawn maintenance schedule that allows the grass to grow longer in certain areas, providing key habitat for bees, butterflies and birds. Dead trees are left in place as snags to provide shelter and feeding sites for birds and mammals. When the facility was expanded in 2008, a walking bridge was constructed to connect the new building to the existing one, ensuring that the wetland was not disrupted. By 2009, the facility was in compliance with the required regulations and has continued their maintenance routine since. 

Employees at AstraZeneca Waltham are very involved in learning about and helping to monitor the habitat. “Employee engagement and site vibrancy is a key pillar in our business,” said Ginena Harkins, Director of Safety, Health & Environment at AstaZeneca. “We strive to provide our employees with the skills and knowledge to do their part in showcasing the biodiversity on-site.”  

In 2021, the project team held a lunch-and-learn event to teach employees about biodiversity and the role of the wetland. The session also included best practices for wildlife photography. Armed with this knowledge, employees were then encouraged to walk the trails, take photos of wildlife and submit them to the project team. The species in these pictures are then identified and used as documentation. To incentivize employee participation, winning photos are chosen and displayed in the main building.  

To help employees in this monitoring process, the company provided backpacks full of gear like binoculars, field guides and bug spray. By installing walking bridges and trails, AstraZeneca ensured that employees can safely explore the area without disturbing the habitat. The site is made up of nine different habitat zones including a deciduous woodland, a vernal pond, a long-grass meadow and a brook, with interpretive signage describing each type of habitat as well as the plants and wildlife found there. 

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the site was limited to essential personnel only, the project team shifted their employee engagement tactics. “We had to pivot our thinking to focus on the ways that our employees could consider enhancing biodiversity in their own homes by hosting virtual lunch and learns with master gardeners to provide insights on local plant life that would attract insect and animal species to their homes,” said Harkins. Now that the site is open to staff again, incentives like the photography contest helped employees re-engage in the project.  

During the past two years, employees have identified more than 65 animal species and 77 plant species at the site. Especially throughout the pandemic, employees have expressed an appreciation for the green space, which gives them an opportunity to relax and get to know the wildlife around them. “We frequently host nature walks that get our employees out of the building to become immersed in our expansive walking trails,” Harkins said. She explained that this initiative not only gets employees involved in the conservation program, but it also benefits their overall health and well-being by giving them an opportunity to get out into nature. 

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Aerial photo of the Paulinia site with people gathered outside.

Solvay | Restoring the Forest and Educating the Community

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Solvay’s Paulínia site, located just outside São Paulo, Brazil, sits on 16 million square meters of land, with the industrial area covering about 15% of this site. The industrial complex is Solvay’s largest site in Latin America, with close to 30 factories producing solvents, silica, polyamide intermediates and more. This site is nestled in the Atlantic Forest biome, alongside two rivers and a variety of native flora and fauna that the Paulínia team is focused on preserving.

Rain and deforestation eroded the banks along the neighboring Anhumas River and left the riparian forest in need of restoration. Starting in 2013, the site team worked to recover six areas along the river by allowing native vegetation to repopulate and mitigating soil erosion with a hexagonal mesh structure called a reno mattress. The team has also worked to restore the surrounding forest by going beyond governmental regulations. Through the planting and management of 34,000 seedlings, the reforestation team plans to have restoration completed in 15 years instead of the legally mandated 20. In addition, they are planting only native trees, as opposed to the 50% native species mandated by law.

Because of the sheer size of the site, completing a species inventory initially proved challenging.

“We applied a sampling approach and counted with the help of our employees,” explained Senior Sustainability and Innovation Manager Ronia Oisiovici. “We are a chemical company, so we were surprised that one of our colleagues was a biologist. He helped us a lot with the identification of the species.” By relying on the knowledge of colleagues, the team was able to catalogue 83 species of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians and reptiles, including several endangered species like the maned wolf and mountain lion.

But habitat and species conservation are not the only areas of focus at Paulínia — community involvement and education are also key components. Started in 1995, the Open Doors project provides opportunities for over 1,200 students, employees and community members per year to learn about conservation, sustainability and the native species that live around them. Through tours of the industrial plant and the surrounding habitats, Open Doors participants learn about the biochemical work done at the plant as well as the wildlife that inhabit the area – with capybara sightings often a spontaneous part of the tour. In addition to the lectures and tours, Paulínia staff hold an Environment Day event each June that aims to educate young people about conservation through fun activities like games, painting and tree plantings.

Students also get involved at the Paulínia site through the Inovar program, a mentorship and training opportunity for students at two nearby public schools. Students work on low-cost projects like waste treatment, disposable menstrual pads, phytoremediation and more under the guidance and supervision of Solvay employees. These connections help students learn not only about sustainability strategies but also about professional practices. In fact, some students who participated in the program have even gone on to intern at Solvay.

While their projects span a variety of habitats and goals, the Solvay Paulínia team sees them as intertwined.

“Having organized all the projects and conservation activities under the umbrella of a well-structured Conservation Program allowed us to understand more about the important interconnection among the projects, to communicate better and to engage more our employees on our conservation journey,” said Oisiovici. “Thinking about big conservation projects is good,” she went on, “but small conservation actions are always very welcomed. The most important thing is to start positively acting for nature conservation. Once you start, you will have the opportunity to learn, to improve and to be able to have a greater conservation impact. This is a journey, not a project.”

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Ontario Power Generation | Crossing the Fence Line to Drive Regional Conservation Action

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The expansion of conservation activities on a site can take many forms. While growth often entails adding new projects or increasing the area of an existing habitat, companies that look beyond their fence lines to support other local conservation efforts can amplify their own impact while forging invaluable partnerships and building environmental resilience.  

The Ontario Power Generation (OPG) facility in Wesleyville, Ontario (60 miles east of Toronto) sits on 1,200 acres of agricultural and pasture lands, as well as forested areas and provincially significant wetlands. Wesleyville Creek, one of the highest-quality coldwater streams in the region, flows across the property, draining into Lake Ontario. For over twenty years, these natural areas have hosted an extensive conservation program that has allowed OPG to strengthen its relationship with neighboring landowners and support local scientific research.  

OPG Wesleyville’s conservation work began in 1997 with an environmental survey that identified two opportunities for OPG to increase on-site biodiversity: reforestation and restoration of the lower reaches of the Wesleyville Stream to support brook trout and other native fish, which face threats such as predation by sea lampreys and the warming of coldwater streams from climate change and deforestation.  

In response to these findings, starting in 1998, employees planted native trees (including pine, spruce, ash, cedar, maple and oak varieties), resulting in over 40,000 seedlings planted on the property over the decades. Additionally, Wesleyville employees began work on a multi-phase stream restoration project, the first step of which entailed clearing out excessive sediment and removing beaver dams that were confining the creek’s brook trout population to areas with limited food and few places to spawn.  

Over time, OPG employees, with assistance of contractors and local conservation authorities, have removed in-stream culverts for greater trout mobility, planted willows to provide shade and moderate the creek’s temperature and, with the help of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, installed a barrier that prevents invasive sea lampreys from entering the creek. Monitoring data collected by the local Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA) indicates that brook trout spawning activity is increasing, sea lampreys are being effectively controlled and the creek’s water quality has remained high.  

Since implementing these initial projects, OPG has continued to grow its conservation efforts. In 2009, 16 nest boxes for cavity-nesting birds like tree swallows and bluebirds were installed. Routine monitoring conducted later that year revealed a pair of young ospreys nesting atop a utility pole. When the ospreys flew south at the end of the year, employees removed wires from the pole and installed a more stable nesting platform. Today, the site features 57 nest boxes, about 95% of which are used by birds each breeding season, and ospreys have fledged nearly every year. Both ospreys and songbirds can find food in the restored forest, and within the site’s two barrier beach marshlands, which OPG fenced off and began to monitor in 2011. 

In addition to managing these on-site projects, OPG has driven conservation action on neighboring properties, which also contain portions of Wesleyville Creek. In 2017, OPG and adjacent landowners partnered in a cost- and data-sharing program that has resulted in uniform creek management practices across the sites, and installation of 20 nest boxes on neighboring lands.  

Ashley Fox, Environmental Advisor at OPG, recommends other conservation teams emulate these efforts. “Collaboration with neighbors has helped OPG’s efforts extend beyond its borders. Considering the benefits of landowner partnerships, it’s worth exploring what your neighbors are already doing. From there, you can discuss opportunities to reduce each company’s workload, share scientific information and stay informed about local changes.”  

Moving forward, OPG and its neighbors intend to work with the Nature Conservancy and the GRCA to control the use of ATVs and dirt bikes near the creek, as these recreational vehicles can destroy spawning sites and increase erosion along the banks.  

In addition to sharing monitoring data with its neighbors, OPG and its partners have made valuable contributions to local research. Every year, grasses and other material from bluebird and tree swallow nests are provided to the Royal Ontario Museum in support of research on cavity-nesting birds, and monitoring data on these species is sent to the Ontario Eastern Bluebird Society, who integrates the information into its spring newsletter. Data collected in the wetlands is used by Environment and Climate Change Canada (a federal agency) as baseline information in studies on biodiversity and climate change’s impact on wetlands.  

Ashley says that these opportunities for collaboration have been critical to the Wesleyville program’s success. “The most rewarding part of our work has been two-fold: meeting new and enthusiastic citizen scientists, and collaborating with our community and professional partners to complete work that has a measurable impact on the local ecosystem. The success of the Wesleyville program is due to the incredible team effort made by a variety of employees and the commitment of OPG’s neighbors and community partners.”  

With its robust partnerships and commitment to maintaining healthy habitats on- and off-site, the OPG Wesleyville program has thrived for decades, and its employees and partners are primed to serve as regional conservation leaders in the years to come.   

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Buzzi Unicem | Building a Legacy of Environmental Stewardship through Education and Collaboration

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Conducting conservation work in a quickly developing region can pose unique challenges, but also creates opportunities for companies to connect with new residents — to teach them about an area’s industrial and environmental histories while also making them a part of the region’s future.  

Hercules Cement Company, owned by Buzzi Unicem USA, operates the Stockertown Plant in the Lehigh Valley, an area between Philadelphia and New York City that is Pennsylvania’s fastest-growing region. The area once produced 60% of the world’s cement and today is still home to many longstanding cement companies (the Stockertown Plant commenced production in 1916). Bushkill Creek, a tributary of the Delaware River, runs through the 700-acre site, which also features a feeder creek and pond, meadowland, forestland, and fruit and chestnut trees. These habitats serve as the backdrop for a myriad of educational and outreach activities which, from the beginning, have been led by Environmental Manager Keith Williams, who works alongside business consultant Sally Handlon, president of Handlon Business Resources, LLC.  

Keith’s family has deep ties to the Lehigh Valley and to industry in the region, and they instilled environmental stewardship in him at an early age — Keith recalls that his father taught him about CO2 emissions in the 1950s, decades before it was a focus of the environmental movement. Keith also cites his high school, which featured an environmental laboratory, as an influence. He views the opportunity to teach today’s youth about the environment as a “full-circle” experience, saying that “the reward is in seeing young people believe in environmental stewardship and practice it on their own.”  

The Stockertown Plant’s educational programming was initiated in 2009, when local legislators, educators and environmental groups were invited on-site for a tour and a discussion of how the site’s pond and creeks could be used for lessons about water. AP Environmental Science and Biology students now regularly visit the site to conduct activities like water quality analyses, soil comparisons and planting events. Sally says that the Stockertown team “wants students to understand environmental impacts beyond what a textbook could teach them. We know that everybody, on an individual level, can do something to help the environment — we want students to get that one something from us.”  

In 2013, the Stockertown team held another site tour, this time, to solicit external input on their plans to convert former farmland into a biodiverse meadow. Planting within this habitat, known as the Hercules Meadow, started later that year. In 2014, the team worked with the American Chestnut Foundation, whose mission is to reestablish chestnut populations across the eastern U.S., to plant the only chestnut orchard in the county. These chestnuts and other tree species have provided habitat for animals like deer, bears, beavers, wild turkeys and foxes, and the meadow’s wildflowers attract many pollinators. The meadow also contains expanses of switchgrass, a low-maintenance, deep-rooted and long-living native grass known for its carbon sequestration properties. Every year, the grass is harvested and used as biofuel in the cement plant, reducing the facility’s carbon emissions; the self-seeding species then grows back the following year.  

Students have assisted with habitat construction through tree planting and nest box construction events; 70-80% of students have stated that these on-site experiences marked their first time partaking in such activities. As promoting STEM careers is a goal of the Stockertown team, Keith and Sally have been pleased to see many of the students pursue environmental science and other STEM fields in college, with some returning to work for the company during summer breaks. Keith also notes that the field trips provide an opportunity for students, many of whom are new to the area, to learn about local history. After visiting the site, these students often tell their families about the facility, its deep roots in the Lehigh Valley and its commitment to environmental stewardship, helping the plant secure social license to operate among new residents.  

The conservation program has also strengthened ties within the company: between corporate leadership and plant management and between plant management and hourly employees. Keith says, “I’m very encouraged by Buzzi Unicem’s perspective — the company doesn’t look at conservation from a traditional ROI approach. It’s looking at these efforts as being an important part of the community, creating working relationships between employees. When I ask for corporate support for the program, the support is always there.”  

The meadow is frequented by the plant’s Rod and Gun Club, a popular organization among the site’s union employees. These hunters help the team with population management as needed and have been happy to see the habitat flourish. “That’s something you can’t put a dollar value on,” Keith says, “When a company is committed to improving employee relations, these types of projects can move them toward that goal.”   

Earlier in 2021, the plant hosted an event with the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, attended by local farmers and government officials, and would like to host similar events moving forward, and to continue expanding outreach efforts. Buzzi is also considering a plan to collaborate with the Rodale Institute on an organic farming project and donate the crops to a local food bank.  

After being unable to visit the site since early 2020, local schools are looking to return to the Hercules Meadow in 2022. In the meantime, the Stockertown team is considering virtual learning options, like the development of an educational video. Sally explains that maintaining relationships with schools, even when site visits aren’t possible, has been key to the project’s longevity. Even before the pandemic, factors like state testing schedules could make it hard to book field trips. She says, “When this happens, we continue to have conversations with teachers on an ongoing basis, provide them with updates on environmental issues and ask for their feedback on past on-site experiences.”  

With this commitment to long-lasting partnerships, plus a passion for legacy-building and innovative nature-based solutions, the Buzzi Unicem team’s impact on biodiversity and on Lehigh Valley residents is primed to keep growing.   

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