In recognition of Arbor Day, nearly 30 DLC employee volunteers, along with members of the Company’s Vegetation Management group, recently participated in various tree planting events to help revitalize our region’s tree canopy. The events also helped raise awareness of the importance of "right tree, right place" planting that beautifies the community while not interfering with power lines. The following is a recap of our employee’s volunteer efforts.
Schenley Park
Duquesne Light partnered with the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy to plant 30-40 trees in an area of Schenley Park that was impacted by oak wilt, a fungal disease that, without treatment, can result in the death of oak trees. In this particular area, a number of trees were impacted and then removed, leaving a large opening without trees. Once the space was treated and cleared, it could then be restored with new trees.
Employees assisted with digging by hand and planting restoration-sized trees varying in species. Representatives from the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy also were on-hand to supervise and support the planting.
Highland Park
Jim Barry, Manager, Vegetation Management, partnered with the City of Pittsburgh to identify an additional tree planting opportunity along the Stanton Avenue entrance to Highland Park. Employee volunteers worked with members of DLC’s Vegetation Management group to dig holes and plant 10 new trees.
During the event, several neighborhood residents stopped by to share their appreciation for Duquesne Light employees braving the rain and planting trees that will ultimately help beautify their community.
Bell Acres Recreation Site
In continuing DLC’s support of Tree Pittsburgh and its mission to protect and grow the city’s urban forest, volunteers had the opportunity to help the organization plant more than 1,000 trees at the former Bell Acres Recreation Site in Sewickley.
Employees joined dozens of other volunteers in planting trees in an effort to help reforest the area, which had been cleared to make way for a development project that was not completed.
DLC Partners with Arbor Day Foundation for Tree Giveaway
In addition to the tree planting events, Duquesne Light also kicked off a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation to offer DLC customers a free tree through the Energy Saving Tree Program. This online program allows customers to input their address and request a tree to plant on their property. It also takes the guesswork out of planting by ensuring that the right tree is recommended to the customer based on their address. Additional details will be shared later this month.
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