COVIA Planta Canoitas

About the Program
With facilities across North America, one of Covia’s mining operations is located in Mexico just across the Texas border in Canoitas within the state of Coahuila. This international company headquartered in Ohio provides minerals and engineered material products for industrial and energy markets. In Mexico, they specialize in silica sand and feldspar. At this site, Covia has successfully managed 13.7 acres of conservation habitat. The aim of these efforts has been to restore and preserve landscapes affected by mining for wildlife, improve habitat conditions and provide and improve habitats for birds, mammals and crucial native bees.

Practices and Impacts

•  Since October 2007, the project has developed large landscaped habitats, which now include over 30 species, such as the Spanish bayonet, green ash and sugarberry.
• The area is maintained through activities such as watering, pruning and weed control. 
• Frequent and extensive monitoring of wildlife and vegetation shows that habitats have improved over time and attracted a lot of native wildlife. 
• Since March 2019, the project has provided food and water to 12 native bee species through the presence of flowering plants, cover vegetation and shaded areas.
• Starting with an initial bee survey in 2019 that documented 46 species, the project has followed up with frequent and in-depth monitoring of vegetation and bee presence. An increasing amount of bee species have been observed, including new species identifications for the site and Mexico.