Mt. Oliver, Pa. – June 12 – Mt. Oliver Borough, working with Grow Pittsburgh and the Conservancy, is in the midst of creating a community vegetable garden, which will have an orchard area with fruit trees and blackberry and raspberry bushes. On Friday, water company employees and other volunteers will assist the effort by planting peach, plum and apple trees.
The garden is a product of the “Allegheny Grows” project with the Allegheny County Department of Economic Development. Through this project, Grow Pittsburgh and WPC select one or more sites per year to plant a new food garden with community members. This large garden sits near the end of Giffin Avenue in the borough’s Transverse Park.
“We’re delighted to be a part of an urban gardening project that is bound to offer countless benefits to its neighbors,” said Judy Wagner, senior director of the WPC’s Community Greening program.
Pennsylvania American Water is one of the Conservancy’s most consistent and long-standing garden sponsors. They have supported WPC community garden projects since 2000 and are recognized for this support at nine locations in Allegheny, Butler, Fayette, Indiana and Washington counties.
“Pennsylvania American Water has sponsored a number of the Conservancy’s community gardens for more than a decade. They are a beautiful reminder of the commitment we’ve made to communities,” said Deborah Lippert, the company’s senior director field operations – Western Pennsylvania. “It makes sense for us extend this work to Mt. Oliver because we have a meter shop in the borough and many of our customers live there.”
In addition to food gardens, the Conservancy partners with more than 12,000 volunteers and dozens of community organizations and businesses to plant, maintain and support 130 flower gardens and greening projects in 20 Western Pennsylvania counties. The Conservancy also beautifies and greens Downtown Pittsburgh with trees, more than 400 hanging baskets and nearly 500 planters.
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An interactive map locating all of the Conservancy’s work can be found here: www.WaterLandLife.org/map
About the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy:
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) enhances the region’s quality of life by protecting and restoring exceptional places. A private nonprofit conservation organization founded in 1932, WPC has helped to establish ten state parks, conserved more than 235,000 acres of natural lands and protected or restored more than 1,500 miles of rivers and streams. The Conservancy owns and operates Fallingwater, which symbolizes people living in harmony with nature. In addition, WPC enriches our region’s cities and towns through 130 community gardens and other green spaces that are planted with the help of about 12,500 volunteers. The work of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy is accomplished through the support of nearly 11,000 members. For more information, visit WaterLandLife.org.
Media contact:
Allison Schlesinger
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy
412-586-2358 (office)
412-607-1945 (cell)
aschlesinger@paconserve.org