Some Sustainability Numbers
SUSTAINABILITY is one of our Twelve Guiding Principles and we take it very seriously!
In addition to not sending anything off site (except litter and posion ivy) we have accepted TWELVE TONS of wood chips thanks to our great sponsor, JD's Trees.
At least 8 dump truck loads received at 6 cubic yards each equals 48 cubic yards which is 24,000 lbs or 12 tons.
(We aren't claiming that we diverted these 12 tons of wood chips from the landfill because Greg has never dumped wood chips at a landfill. He has always found a homeowner or school, church, business who could use them.)
In addition to accepting the 12 tons of wood chips (thank you Greg!) we also did not send any tree trimmings off site. The branches were either used for demarcating pathways or they were ground up and left on site and used as mulch.
We also received many passenger truckloads of used cardboard which we employed as organic weedkiller under a heavy load of wood chips.
Last Fall we took in quite a few bags of leaves as well. We had an arrangement with two landscaping companies to receive many trailer loads of leaves this Fall but with me not having a working vehicle at the moment I'm not able to get there to unlock the gate for them so we are missing out on that. That's heartbreaking because it would help increase our firefly population even more than the wonderful late Spring displays we already have. So we now will be a full year behind on this initiative, unfortunately.
We also brought in many pickup truckloads of brick -- some from building demolition sites!! -- and used these to outline major pathways, construct Memorial Plaza, etc.
We even rescued 3/4 of a gallon of metal paint that was going to be discarded at the completion of a commercial project. We used this to paint half of our metal plot outlines.
Oak Cliff Gardeners donates MANY unused items which we sell and use to fund mowing when I need extra help and also for permanent improvements like benches so those with mobility issues can rest. This has raised a few thousand dollars as well as kept many items out of the waste stream.
Speaking of permanent improvements, next year we will also be able to say we even helped with fossil fuel reduction because we are installing a bike rack and will be encouraging cyclists to use their bikes when they come visit.