GM Plant Sites Certifiably Kind to Their Habitats

Image via Wikipedia

Six General Motors facilities globally are joining 15 others in earning the Wildlife Habitat Council certification for creating or enhancing wildlife habitats on their grounds. With 21 certified programs, GM leads all automotive manufacturers.
GM incorporates elements like walking trails, native tree plantings, butterfly gardens, rain gardens to control storm water runoff, restored prairie and wetlands, and bat and duck nesting boxes. It works with the nonprofit WHC to encourage habitat management and environmental education at its sites.
The  Wildlife at Work^SM and Corporate Lands for Learning^SM certification programs recognize companies that establish community education about conservation. Features of GM’s new certifications include:

• Inviting local schools to educational activities, creating habitats for amphibians and small mammals, and planting 1,800 trees and 1,500 bushes at the CAMI Assembly Plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, where the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain are produced.
• Encouraging community members to participate in conservation activities, such as constructing and installing bird nesting boxes for Eastern Blue Birds at the Arlington, Texas Assembly plant, home of full-size SUVs like the Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Cadillac Escalade.
• Incorporating site-based conservation education and planting native trees at Baltimore Operations in White Marsh, Md., where electric motors will be produced next year in addition to two-mode hybrid drivetrains.
• Reusing Chevrolet Volt battery covers for wood duck nesting boxes and involving local experts in their efforts at Milford, Mich. Proving Ground.
• Inviting local schools to participate in site-based events such as planting native trees at the Gravataí, Brazil Plant, which builds the Chevrolet Celta and Prisma.
• Teaching students about environmental issues through music, theater, and lectures, and offering employees bi-weekly environmental education at the São José dos Campos, Brazil Plant, where the Chevrolet Corsa, Classic, Blazer, S10 pickup, Meriva and Zafira are built.

“We find General Motors’ environmental leadership commendable and hope other companies follow their lead,” said Wildlife Habitat Council President Robert Johnson. “WHC congratulates GM for its commitment and contributions to wildlife habitat enhancement, community outreach, and conservation education.”
WHC’s program recognizes outstanding wildlife habitat management and environmental education efforts at corporate sites, and offers third-party validation of the benefits of such programs. Certification requirements are strict and require that sites apply for periodic renewal.
Six other GM facilities achieved Wildlife at Work and Corporate Lands for Learning recertification, having continued their successful wildlife habitat management programs.
“This commitment presents significant benefits to the environment, as well as our employees,” said Susan Kelsey, a GM Environmental Group facilities manager. “It gives them a place to find relaxation, harness creativity and have a tangible, positive impact on the local community.”