Owens Corning plant in Arkansas noted for support of zoos, animal sanctuaries
by March 16, 2016 5:04 pm 285 views
Fort Smith’s Owens Corning manufacturing facility was among several recognized by Hose2Habitat for its role in recycling materials for animal enrichment at zoos and animal sanctuaries, the environmental group stated in a recent press release.
Hose2Habitat reuses fire hoses, brushes, cardboard and other items for the purposes of habitat enrichment. Participating facilities can use these discarded items for toys, feeding, and as educational tools to enrich animals’ lives.
“The number of items we have identified that can benefit animal enrichment keeps growing,” said Michele Mazza, energy and waste reduction program manager, Owens Corning. “These items have gone to landfills for years, but we are excited that they can now be put to good use. An important sustainability goal at Owens Corning is to eliminate waste to landfill, and Hose2Habitat is helping our facilities pursue that goal.”
10 Owens Corning facilities in North America donate manufacturing items to zoos and sanctuaries through Hose2Habitat – including the plant in Fort Smith and locations in Ontario, Canada, California, Georgia, Illinois, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas.
“Owens Corning was instrumental in Hose2Habitat growing from a regional program that donated fire hose into an international nonprofit facilitating the donation of many different types of materials to zoos around the world,” said Lisa Daly, executive director, Hose2Habitat. “We are humbled by and grateful for the support that Owens Corning and its employees have shown for our program.”
“Items such as sweeper brushes, cardboard tubes, buckets and bags are some of the many items we receive from Owens Corning,” said Jodi Carrigan, keeper at Zoo Atlanta. “These donations support enrichment and better the lives of our animals.”
Owens Corning and Hose2Habitat have worked together since April of last year. Examples of material uses include fire hoses that have been converted into hammocks for felines; feeders for lemurs and balls for bears; sweeper brushes for rhino scratching posts; and cardboard tubes, which are tossed around as toys for camels.
The Owens Corning team behind this joint effort with Hose2Habitat was recently recognized with the company’s 2015 environmental outreach award.