Plaster Creek flows about one mile east of the plant, which lies within the creek's 58-square mile watershed.
WYOMING, MI – General Motors’ Grand Rapids Operations at 1600 Burton St. SW has been recognized by the Wildlife Habitat Council for educating local school students about the Plaster Creek Watershed.
Plaster Creek flows about one mile east of the plant, which lies within the creek’s 58-square mile watershed. Plaster Creek is a habitat that includes fish, plants and other indigenous aquatic life.
The GM plant received a “Corporate Lands for Learning” certification for educating students at local schools on watershed habitats and environmental stewardship.
Volunteers from the plant used the watershed to educate students in the Lee-Godfrey School District by demonstrating the importance of protecting watershed health, according to a news release announcing the award.
“Both the school and the plant are located within the Plaster Creek watershed so particular emphasis is placed on issues which affect this watershed, as well as the extended watershed,” said Kevin Nadrowski, the plant’s communications manager.
“The program consists of a classroom discussion of watersheds using a watershed model, and extends outside of the classroom to the construction of rain barrels, a rain garden, and a trip to Plaster Creek to discover how macro invertebrates and other animals are indicators of water quality,” Nadrowksi said.
“While at Plaster Creek, the students also did a trash pick-up and removal of invasive species.”
Plaster Creek does not meet the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s Water Quality Standards because of pollutants. Protection of this watershed is vital to its health, and educating the public about Plaster Creek helps to restore it, according to the council.
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“Our habitat program provides significant benefits to the environment and the dedicated employees who manage it,” said Annette Wendland, environmental engineer at Grand Rapids Operations. “It also serves as an outdoor classroom to educate youth and the community on the importance of conservation.”
Employees from Grand Rapids Operations also partner with the West Michigan Environmental Action Council to administer the Teach for Watershed (T4W) program. T4W teaches students how to assess water quality.
GM’s Grand Rapids Operations,which recently achieved landfill-free status, is one of 40 GM facilities around the world with conservation programs certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council.
According to its news release, GM has more certifications than any automaker and has committed to creating and securing wildlife habitat certifications or equivalent at each of its manufacturing sites globally by 2020.
Jim Harger covers business for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at jharger@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook or Google+.