Energy and Natural Resource Conservation Efforts

The zoo has an extensive environmental conservation program spanning all areas of operations. Coordinated by a Green Team comprised of senior staff from key departments, the program has spurred Lincoln Park Zoo’s certification as one of Chicago’s Green Museums. A full-time Coordinator of Environmental Initiatives works exclusively on the development of individual green initiatives as well as the drafting of a long-term strategic plan for green practices.

Clean Air Actions
Atmospheric protection and air pollution prevention
Lincoln Park Zoo uses low-volatile organic compound (VOC) materials, such as paints, caulk and cleaning supplies, whenever possible. Besides being unhealthy to people and animals, VOCs contribute to global warming by oxidizing to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and smog by reacting with nitrogen oxides and oxygen. From 2001–2006, 98.3 percent of all paints used on zoo property met national low-VOC standards while 90.1 percent met the more stringent Green Seal low-VOC standards. Furthermore, 96.6 percent of all cleaning supplies used by Collections staff and 89.0 percent of all cleaning supplies used by Lincoln Park Zoo’s custodial contractor met Green Seal’s stringent standards.

Lincoln Park Zoo is also an active member of the Chicagoland Clean Air Counts organization. The zoo’s low-VOC materials, energy-efficient lighting and staff alternative-workplace transportation choices have reduced air pollution by 17,057.27 pounds during the past five years—that’s more than 1.5 tons a year! On September 26, 2006, the zoo accepted a Partners for Clean Air Excellence Award for these pollution prevention actions.

Energy Conservation
Green building design
Many zoo buildings incorporate a variety of green building elements to reduce their ecological footprint. Lincoln Park Zoo currently has six green roofs: two are at the Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo (one on the main building’s east side and one on the bear and wolf holding building), two are at Regenstein Center for African Apes (one on the main roof and one over the building’s offices), one covers the flamingo holding facility, and one shields the animal-holding area of the C.H. “Doc” Searle, M.D. Animal Hospital.

Many buildings also incorporate natural lighting and/or ventilation:

• Kovler Lion House—Windows are located all along the southern side of the building, enabling passive ventilation during warmer months.
• Regenstein African Journey—Large skylights maximize passive illumination. They can also be opened for natural ventilation, reducing the amount of energy required to heat and cool the building.
• Regenstein Center for African Apes—Animal exhibit areas feature skylights and extensive glass walls that reduce the requirement for artificial lighting. The exterior walls are movable, enabling animals to access the outdoor habitats at their choosing and naturally ventilating the indoor habitats, reducing dependence on artificial ventilation.
• Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo—Operable windows on east and west sides of the Children’s Zoo facilitate passive ventilation during shoulder seasons and optimize natural illumination.

Additionally, a variety of environmentally responsible materials have been incorporated into newly constructed buildings. These include recycled tires used as flooring in the main exhibit floor of the Children’s Zoo and three different sections of Regenstein African Journey as well as an indoor bridge in Regenstein African Journey constructed from a wood alternative made from recycled plastic and wood waste material.

Energy efficiency
In Fall 2006, Lincoln Park Zoo completed a comprehensive ComEd energy audit to identify specific areas where energy efficiency could be improved. When the engineers’ report is received, the zoo plans to take incremental steps to increase our institution’s energy efficiency.

Responsible Purchasing
Eco-procurement
Across the zoo, various items are purchased based on their environmental credentials. Zoo Foods orders plates and bowls made of bagasse (a biodegradable material made from used sugarcane stalks), elemental chlorine-free paper coffee cups lined with vegetable-based compostable coating, 100 percent recycled fiber napkins (minimum 90 percent post-consumer fiber) and hand towels made with at least 95 percent recycled fiber (minimum 20 percent post-consumer fiber).

For Spooky Zoo 2006, the Auxiliary Board purchased 17,500 environmentally responsible biodegradable, polystyrene-free, corn-based BioBags. These bags represent a significant environmental improvement over the petroleum-based plastic bags handed out to trick-or-treaters at this event in past years. Moreover, many of the publications produced by the zoo’s Graphics Department contain recycled content, typically 10 percent, 30 percent or 100 percent post-consumer fiber. The 100 percent post-consumer paper, Mohawk Options, is produced using wind power and purchased through a mill, distributor and printer who are all certified through the Forest Stewardship Council.

The Bartholomay Conservation Center recently received an environmentally responsible carpet replacement. The chosen carpet company, Lees, maintains an ISO 14001 certified manufacturing plant, and all their products pass the stringent VOC limits for the Carpet and Rug Institute’s Green Label Plus. The new carpet is 100 percent recyclable.

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

Source reduction

• The Graphics Department routes all possible jobs in PDF format to cut down on paper waste
• Visitor areas are equipped with hand driers rather than paper towels
• Inter- and intra-office paper use is limited. Memos and job announcements are communicated electronically, daily Keeper Reports are completed electronically and manila envelopes are reused continually for inter-office mail
• Zoo Foods uses washable rags to clean tables rather than disposable paper towels

Recycling

• A zoo-wide recycling program collecting all types of paper, cardboard, plastic and aluminum has been in place for many years; staff are encouraged to bring in additional materials from home to recycle
• Beginning October 2006, events on zoo ground have started to incorporate recycling
• Both dry and wet cell batteries are recycled
• Old computers are recycled/reused by Vintage Tech Recyclers Inc.
• Following a successful pilot program, Lincoln Park Zoo’s small-electronic items recycling system (using GreenDisk’s TechnoTrash Can) is expanding to service all staff areas

Reuse

• Staff at the C.H. “Doc” Searle, M.D. Animal Hospital has devised myriad innovative ways to reuse materials, including reusing gallon jugs as anesthetic masks for larger animals and traffic cones as penguin restraint devices
• The nutrition center and retail commissary reuse wood pallets
• Keepers often reuse items such as paper towel rolls, boxes, bags and paper for enrichment

Manure composting plans
Recognizing that our institution produces a large mass of biodegradable waste, zoo staff have extensively researched the possibility of composting these materials. Since the zoo doesn’t have sufficient space to complete large-scale composting on grounds, we are in need of an institution that could compost for us. A local nonprofit composting organization has been identified and the zoo is now awaiting the construction of their new in-vessel composting facility.

Saving Water
Water conservation
Several aquatic exhibits contain water-efficient filtration and recirculation systems. These include the Riverbanks and Free Flight exhibits in the McCormick Bird House, all pools in the Kovler Penguin/Seabird House, four of five pools in the Children’s Zoo, the 266,000 gallon polar bear pool, the hippo and crocodile pools and large cichlid tanks at Regenstein African Journey, Regenstein Center for African Apes’ large outdoor waterfall, the Kovler Sea Lion Pool and all five exhibit pools in Regenstein Small Mammal-Reptile House. Additionally, a stormwater management system was included in the construction of the zoo’s newest exhibit—the Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo. This extensive drainage system, located below the exhibit’s outdoor forested areas and walkways, collects surface rainwater and distributes it below grade on site, reducing water load entering the city sewer system.

Additional Actions
Ecological stewardship
Saturday, Sept 16, 2006 marked the zoo’s first annual South Pond cleanup. Coordinated by Lincoln Park Zoo’s Education Department, the event engaged school groups and community members in stewardship at the pond. Over 250 volunteers registered for the event, and all trash collected was weighed and tallied. In just two hours, volunteers picked up 147 pounds of trash; among the batteries, articles of clothing and many pieces of plastic, 885 cigarette filters were retrieved. This information was recorded by the Alliance for the Great Lakes International Coastal Cleanup initiative through the Ocean Conservancy.

Environmental education
An integral part of the zoo’s greening effort is to educate staff and visitors about why protecting the environment is important and how they can contribute to this effort. New employees are now trained in proper environmental operations at the zoo. A volunteer naturalist program was also created to directly engage visitors in environmental instruction. This program, begun in May 2006, is centered on South Pond and currently consists of 35 volunteers, ranging in age from college students to retirees. The volunteer naturalists are trained by zoo education staff to collect scientific data on water quality, birding and pond ecology. They then interpret this data and the surrounding ecosystem for zoo visitors, manning three mobile labs (weather permitting).

The final component of the zoo’s environmental education effort is the Edible Garden in the Farm-in-the-Zoo Presented by John Deere, staffed by an employee of Chicago’s Green City Market. This hands-on educational facility engages children of all ages in every aspect of organic farming, including soil preparation, planting, weeding, harvesting and composting. The real-time lessons expose children to the core ideas of environmental sustainability. This facility also serves as a key educational element for visiting school groups. In 2007, the Edible Garden was expanded to include the large crop garden in the center of the Farm-in-the-Zoo.

Low impact landscaping
Native plants are often favored for zoo gardens due to these species’ hardiness and drought-resistance. An estimated 40 percent of all garden plants at Lincoln Park Zoo are native species. Our landscaping staff also relies almost entirely on hand weeding, greatly limiting the need for chemical herbicides. Pests in exhibits are controlled solely through the release of beneficial insects, while on grounds pesticides are used sparingly and as a last resort, with nontoxic measures being favored. Furthermore, calcium chloride, a rock salt alternative, is used on all paved surfaces within the zoo to reduce the environmental impact of deicing.

• Partners in Greening—Lincoln Park Zoo is proud to work with a variety of institutions to improve our green activities. Allied Waste Services has been involved in our zoo-wide recycling improvement plan, the City of Chicago provided the materials to start our battery recycling program, engineers from ComEd completed an exhaustive energy audit of the zoo and the Shedd Aquarium has generously offered a variety of greening tips. We look forward to new and expanded collaborations in the future.