Partnerships for Wildlife
Bank Swallow nesting area on site
Residents of Caldwell County no longer have to travel to see deer, hawks, butterflies
and other various animals living in their natural environment because Lenoir
has a brand-new wildlife habitat.
The Vulcan Materials Lenoir Quarry on Wilkesboro Boulevard recently was recognized
as a Wildlife and Industry Together (W.A.I.T.) site by the North Carolina Wildlife
Federation for creating a valuable wildlife habitat on its grounds.
Tom Carroll, a representative from Vulcan Materials Company, said the Lenoir
site took a personal interest in pursuing the wildlife habitat after seeing
other Vulcan sites do the same thing.
"Some of the employees had a personal interest in wildlife, and they took
it upon themselves to move forward with the idea," Carroll said. "It
was something the guys wanted, and it progressed from there. I am really proud
of them."
W.A.I.T. is a program designed to raise public awareness and participation in conservation, wildlife restoration and wildlife protection activities. Those who participate agree to convert a portion of their property into a wildlife habitat, appoint an employee committee to coordinate the plan and develop educational opportunities for employees and the local community.
"Vulcan had lots of acreage that was not being used, and now they have
provided homes for lots of birds, butterflies and other animals," said
Tim Gestwicki, Federation Coordinator of the W.A.I.T. program in North Carolina.
"This site serves as a model habitat that will benefit wildlife and air
and water for the entire community, and supports our organization's habitat
goal to have every available acre in the state best managed for wildlife."
Employees at the Lenoir site have adopted a plan with the assistance of local
civic organizations and are in the process of implementing the plan. Some of
the projects planned, include planting trees, a bluebird nesting box program,
installing duck boxes on a new pond, planting butterfly bushing and installing
predator guards on bird house posts.
Carroll said a wildlife team is being developed through employees at the facility
who wanted to volunteer, and they will make this commitment a part of their
daily routine.
"It will be a natural extension of what the volunteers already do on a regular basis," Carroll said. "It won't affect their regular duties because it will be an extra activity."
Vulcan has been working with the North Carolina Forest Service, 4H Fish and
Wildlife Club of Caldwell County, Kings Creek and Lower Creek elementary schools,
Hibriten High School and Cub Scouts Pack 258 to accomplish its goals.
"It is a great opportunity to partnership with civic groups to share the importance of wildlife habitats," Carroll said.
Along with the wildlife habitat, the Lenoir site also is developing a library to provide educational opportunities for both the employees and the public. The facility will be available for outdoor classrooms for the schools in the community, and eventually may serve as a field trip for schools in surrounding communities. Carroll said this opportunity opens the door for everyone in the community to become more aware of wildlife.
"Our site in Winston-Salem has a place where the schools go frequently to study wildlife," Carroll said. "Schools from surrounding communities also are making routine field trips to the site as part of their curriculum."
Jack Marsh, Vulcan plant manager, said he is excited to have this opportunity, and he knows the team will do its best to maintain the site.
"Promoting and maintaining a healthy environment is part of our operating plan," Marsh said. "Environmental partnerships and well-managed wildlife projects benefit us all."
There are roughly 20 W.A.I.T. sites in North Carolina, including Duke Power's McGuire Nuclear Station, KEMET Electronics and IBM. The Vulcan Cabarrus site was the first quarry to be W.A.I.T.-certified in the state, and now the Vulcan site in Lenoir is added to the list.
The North Carolina Wildlife Federation is an affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation. It works to communicate, cooperate and partner with the North Carolina General Assembly, state resource agencies, corporations and other interested groups to advance the well-being of wildlife and its habitat. The North Carolina program also is dedicated to being the leading advocate for all of North Carolina's wildlife and habitat.
For more information, check out the Web site www.ncwf.org, or call (704) 332-5696 1800-264-NCWF