Birmingham Zoo begins conservation initiative with Alabama Power

The Birmingham Zoo this month announced a new partnership with Alabama Power Company. The limbs and branches, known as browse, left over from Alabama Power Company’s vegetation management tree trimming program will be collected and given to the Birmingham Zoo.

According to a Birmingham Zoo news release, Alabama Power crews remove limbs and branches daily from right-of-ways near power lines across the state. The browse the zoo is now receiving is from all across the Birmingham metro area.

“The Birmingham Zoo is essential to the quality of life and growth of the city of Birmingham. Through this partnership, Alabama Power is excited to support the Zoo in this sustainable project," said Jonathan Porter, Vice President of Alabama Power's Birmingham Division.

Corey Sweeney, manager of Alabama Power’s vegetation management department, said the partnership is a positive one for all involved.

“We are focused on serving our communities,” said Sweeney. “It is great to see a mutually beneficial program where we are able to provide brush and limbs from our tree trimming program with the animal nutrition program at the Birmingham Zoo.”

The donated browse will be used in a variety of ways throughout the zoo, according to the release. Some browse will be given to animals, including elephants and barn animals, as part of their dietary regimen. The browse will also be given to some bird species at the zoo to use for building nests, while some other animals will receive the browse as an enrichment item. This partnership will make use of the trees and limbs, and will also be cost-saving for the zoo, according to the release.

“This initiative shows how the Zoo strives to fulfill its mission daily to Inspire Passion for the Natural World, and emphasizes conservation. Making use of these items that would otherwise be discarded is a tremendous mutual benefit for the Birmingham Zoo and for Alabama Power Company. We are thankful for community partnerships and look forward to the future of this initiative,” said Dr. William Foster, President and CEO of the Birmingham Zoo.

For more information about the Birmingham Zoo, visit the Zoo on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter, or at birminghamzoo.com.