Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/85652
A wildlife habitat spanning one-third of an acre is actively managed on the Lafarge Bow River Aggregates site. According to habitat ranges established by the Canadian Species at Risk public registry, several endangered and threatened species have the potential to use this site, including peregrine falcon, piping plover, yellow rail, and western toad. ENVIRONMENT Mining for the company's gravel pit one day is another person's wildlife-filled park down the line. Lafarge has partnered with the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) to turn mined- out pits into wildlife refuges, wetlands, and mead- ows, showing that an industry that often suffers from NIMBYism (Not In My Backyard) is good for the environment and is actively working to make its sites welcoming to wildlife and native vegetation. "For a long time, Lafarge globally has recognized the impact that extracting aggregate has — just the footprint alone," says Wade Frick, environmental manager of Greater Calgary and Greater Winnipeg for Lafarge North America. "But there is more to it than that. We recognize the impact mining can leave on the landscape, so we decided to explore a certification rooted in biodiversity and sustain- ability." A Lafarge joined WHC as a corporate member in 1992 and became involved with the WHC's Wildlife at Work certification program. The company is also involved in several other environment programs globally, including the World Wildlife Fund. Most recently, two Lafarge sites in Calgary, Al- berta, Canada — Bow River Aggregates and Lafarge Meadows — have been certified by WHC's Wildlife at Work program. Lafarge Meadows was initially certified in 2009 and applied for recertification in 2011. The site will be up for recertification in 2014. Bow River was initially certified in 2011 and will have to submit for recertification in 2013. Both sites were among the 251 sites recognized in mid-February at the WHC's 23rd Annual Sympo- sium titled, "People, Partnerships, and Pathways," for creating or maintaining a Wildlife at Work pro- gram. When it was operational, Lafarge Meadows — known as South Pit — was a 150-acre area that is now part of Fish Creek Provincial Park. This site was made into an extension of Fish Creek Park after Lafarge donated the reclaimed property. The site is adjacent to the Bow River and contains a network Lafarge's Wildlife at Work certification shows how aggregate operations can coexist in harmony with the environment. by Tina Grady Barbaccia, News & Digital Editor WILDLIFE 45