APPROACHES TO LAND USE AND CLEANUP

Environmental remediation and plant decommissioning is conducted using an integrated, single-point-of-focus team responsible for all environmental remediation, plant clean-up, and demolition activities.  This small group of experts is responsible for the implementation of environmental cleanup programs and timely demolition of unused GM facilities.  A key focus of this team is on suitable redevelopment.

GM participates in restoration of former industrial or waste sites in conjunction with other parties such as local governments, developers, and communities.

Case study: GM Syracuse Main Plant

This 800,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in Syracuse, New York ceased operations in 1993 and GM entered a Consent Order with the State of New York to clean up the facility while redeveloping the site into a new industrial park.  Tons of contaminated soil were removed, storm sewers were cleaned, a new storm-water-management system was constructed, and the facility's former landfill was closed.  With strategic scheduling, GM was able to employ some innovative approaches to the cleanup, such as the use of low-level contaminated soils as landfill cover and the use of an excavated area for the construction of the new storm-water system.  In April 2005, GM received an award for engineering excellence from the American Council of Engineering Companies of New York for the innovative approaches used in restoring this former manufacturing facility.  The facility is now home to more than 15 small to mid-size companies that continue to grow the economy of central New York. 

PROTECTING WILDLIFE AND BIODIVERSITY

• Case study:  The Nature Conservancy
• Case study:  Protecting the Brazilian Rain Forest
• Case study:  GM/Wildlife Habitat Council
• Case study:  Earthforce-GREEN

Case study:  The Nature Conservancy

In 1994, The Nature Conservancy and General Motors began a relationship that was unprecedented for both organizations in its size and scope.  GM was drawn to the Conservancy because its collaborative approach promotes a healthy economy and a healthy environment.  It also generates innovative initiatives within local communities that preserve landscapes, help local economies, and save precious places around the world.

During the past 12 years, GM has donated nearly $10 million in cash and more than 180 vehicles to aid the often-rugged conservation work of the Conservancy.  GM's funding supports many different projects within the Conservancy, and GM's donated vehicles are serving on preserves in all 50 states in the U.S. and in 20 other countries.  Most recently, GM donated a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado to The Nature Conservancy of Texas in Dallas.  In addition, GM donated two Saturn VUE Green Line Hybrid vehicles to The Nature Conservancy in Washington, DC and San Francisco.  In 2006, a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe was donated to The Nature Conservancy of Wisconsin to assist in the conservation of Chequamegon Bay, Mukwonago River Watershed, and Lulu Lake.  The Silverado and the Tahoe are two of GM’s FlexFuel vehicles, so they can run on either gasoline or E85 ethanol.  E85 ethanol burns cleaner than gasoline, reduces our dependence on petroleum, and is mostly renewable. 

During 2006, GM and the GM Foundation provided financial assistance to The Nature Conservancy in China to work with the local government in developing a Reserve Area Management Plan for the Chongming Dongtan Nature Reserve, near Shanghai.  A second initiative supports the Conservancy’s work on the National China Blueprint Project.

In addition, GM has provided $10 million to the Conservancy to restore and protect about 30,000 acres of endangered land in the Atlantic Rainforest Restoration Project in Brazil .  To date, GM's total donation to The Nature Conservancy reaches over $24 million.  For more information on The Nature Conservancy visit www.nature.org.

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Case study: Protecting the Brazilian Rainforest

In 2001, GM launched a major initiative to restore and protect more than 30,000 acres of degraded rainforest in southern Brazil.  The Brazil Atlantic Rainforest Restoration Project, a collaborative undertaking between GM, The Nature Conservancy, and the Sociedade de Pesquisa em Vida Selvagem (SPVS, a leading Brazilian conservation organization), purchases privately owned agricultural land in Brazil's Atlantic Forest and converts it into a private nature preserve owned and managed by SPVS.  The $10 million project protects this wildlife habitat in perpetuity, while stabilizing the Cachoeira River valley environment by reducing slash and burn clearances and pollution, and creating economic opportunities for nearby communities.

A primary objective of the project is to create a scientifically based model for biodiversity protection and ecosystem restoration on a large scale.  Scientists quantify and document how the restored forest absorbs atmospheric carbon, to better understand the role that reforestation, preservation, and natural regeneration can play in responding to concerns over global climate change.

In October 2005, representatives from GM and American Electric Power officially dedicated a visitor’s center for environmental education on the Cachoeira River Natural Reserve, located in the state of Paraná in Brazil.  The announcement coincided with a week-long series of meetings hosted by The Nature Conservancy’s International Leadership Council.

The dedication highlights a partnership between GM, The Conservancy, and SPVS (Society for Wildlife Research and Environmental Education) that serves to restore and protect 30,000 acres of the Brazilian Rainforest.

“GM has been a long-time partner with The Nature Conservancy and this rainforest restoration project is particularly important to us,” said Elizabeth A. Lowery, GM vice president, Environment and Energy.  “Today, we are happy to dedicate this new visitor’s center that will highlight the importance of Brazil’s rainforests and encourage others to join us in the protection of this natural resource.”

The opening of the visitor’s center is part of a project that began more than five years ago.  The center is intended to serve the local community and visitors to the region with educational resources and activities.  It will also support field operations involved in the restoration of the adjacent rainforest.  Also housed within the center are training rooms, exhibits, interactive modules, and kiosks illustrating the program’s contribution to environmental awareness and action.  In addition, a nature trail has been developed for visitors to experience the reserve and the habitats it serves to protect.

GM, along with twelve other U.S. corporations, participated in the meetings that included a first-hand review of the current environmental projects inside the Atlantic Rainforest, specifically in the Bahia and Paraná states of Brazil.
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Case study:  GM/Wildlife Habitat Council

In 2002, General Motors began a partnership with the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC), a non-profit group of corporations, conservation groups, and individuals dedicated to enhancing and restoring wildlife habitats.  WHC helps landowners, particularly companies, manage their unused land in an ecologically sensitive manner.  This program has brought together volunteer wildlife teams of company employees and community groups, such as the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and local schools.

With the goal of sustainable companies operating in sustainable communities, habitat programs help develop an environmentally aware workforce and public.

Currently, eight GM facilities have attained WHC certification. These are:

• Saginaw Metal Casting Operations, Michigan, for its demonstration wetland which uses and recycles site wastewater;
• Saginaw Malleable Iron, Michigan, for its Malleable Prairie, a capped former municipal landfill which is now a habitat for native wildflowers and other wildlife;
• GM Canada Headquarters, Oshawa, for its stewardship of the 105-acre McLaughlin Bay Wildlife Reserve;
• Lordstown Assembly for its Blue Heron rookery – the largest in the State of Ohio with around 375 established nests in the rookery;
• Bedford, Indiana – Butterfly/Pollinator Garden;
• Spring Hill Manufacturing, Tennessee – Entire Site;
• GM World Headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan – an outside plaza and promenade along the Detroit River contain native species and soft-engineering shoreline;
• GM Technical Center in Warren, Michigan – created a green space from an eight-acre parking lot with native wildflowers, grasses, shrubs, and trees.

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Case study:  Earthforce-GREEN

Since the 1980s, GM has supported the efforts of the Global Rivers Environmental Education Network (GREEN) by providing employee mentors and financial support to watershed education efforts.  GM partnered with the environmental organization Earth Force in 1999 and expanded GREEN.  The GREEN program engages GM employees, educators, and young people across the U.S. and Canada to clean up our rivers.  The program is making real contributions to education and watershed protection, while giving GM employees a meaningful way to give back to their communities.  In 2005, 312 GM mentors representing 58 facilities participated in the program.

Some of the ways that GM volunteers are investing their time through GM-GREEN include:

• Providing volunteer support in the classroom and on river sampling field trips;
• offering scientific expertise and connecting students to other local contacts for community research and action projects;
• arranging for videotaping and photographing of student events;
• helping to identify and research local and regional environmental issues, such as watershed management practices.

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