GM Plants Give Back During Earth Week
During Earth Week in April, many of our facilities coordinated efforts with employees to give back to the environment. Activities ranged from planting flowers to cleaning up the highway.
We’ve captured some of their efforts below to give you a taste of how our facilities play an important role in their communities.
Adopt-A-Highway Earth Day Clean Up in Saginaw
A crew from Saginaw Metal Casting Operation recently participated in a highway clean up. Six employees from SMCO tackled the two-mile stretch of I-75 just six miles south of the plant. Several bags of trash were collected. SMCO has been cleaning this section of the highway for 15 years.
Baltimore Operations Beautifies Property
Plant employees brought their kids to work during Earth Week to learn about electric motors and the environmental benefits of electric cars. The plant builds electric motors for the Chevrolet Spark EV and Volt. In fact, we’re the first domestic automaker to build electric motors and drive units in the U.S. Then employees and their kids planted coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, and asters around the plant’s entrance sign.
GMCH Lockport Helps Clean Up Local Canal
Nearly 25 employees from GM and UAW Local 686 and their family members picked up garbage, raked, and trimmed trees on Saturday, April 26, as part of an Earth Week event sponsored by the Lockport Canal Development Task Force. Lockport Components employees have been participating in the Canal Cleanup since 2011.
Tonawanda Engine Hosts Largest Recycling Event in 7 Years
The turnout for the electronic and fluorescent lamps recycling event at Tonawanda Engine, held in conjunction with Erie County, far exceeded estimates of less than 200 cars to the event, with 537 cars dropping off electronics and lamps. That’s 137 vehicles per hour. The plant collected approximately 75 tons of electronics and 1,000 fluorescent tubes. In comparison, Tonawanda collected a little over two tons last year.
GM Wentzville Creates Habitats with Science Students
Our Wentzville Assembly plant kicked off its Earth Day events April 11 with the help of 13 science students from Wentzville’s Holt High School, who helped prepare areas of the plant property for three habitat projects, including butterfly gardens and improvements to storm water retention ponds for aquatic life. Wentzville also partnered with the Greenway Network’s Mission: Clean Stream project April 12 for a Saturday morning cleanup of area creeks, streams and other waterways, hosting 75 community volunteers. Later that day they hosted an Earth Day Festival, featuring environment-inspired crafts, energy saving home improvement experts, and live bluegrass music.
Fort Wayne Assembly Demonstrates Watershed Effects for Earth Day
More than 200 children made it “rain” at Earth Day Fort Wayne, held at the Little River Wetlands Project on Sunday, April 28. But rain was part of the plan, as the environmental team from Fort Wayne Assembly demonstrated how pollutants make it into our waterways. Using an interactive model, the team encouraged attendees to use spray bottles to rain on the green sugar “fertilizer” and chocolate sprinkle “animal waste” and watch how it affects our earth.
In addition to the watershed activity, the environmental team had a pH testing area where families could see whether vinegar, water, and soda were acidic. Children of all ages enjoyed dipping their test strips into the liquids and comparing them to pH color charts.
Warren Technical Center Employees Share Recycling Projects with Their Kids
More than 2,600 employees and their kids visited our Vehicle Engineering Center in Warren, Michigan, during Take Your Kids to Work Day during Earth Week. Members of our sustainability team showed youngsters how the company is working toward a more sustainable future through recycling, including showing off some of our Chevy Volt battery cover wood duck nesting boxes.
