Menomonie

About the Program
Covia Holding Corporation manages a 365-acre Menomonie, Wisconsin, mining site, located about 27 miles southwest of Eau Claire and 86 miles southeast of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. The primary use of the facility is mining, but there are also some agricultural activities on-site. Areas surrounding Menomonie include industrial, commercial and residential developments with some rural land. The property includes habitats such as grassland habitat, a forested area and two ponds. 

Practices and Impacts

• Beginning in June 2008, the team partnered with Saving Birds Thru Habitat to enhance avian habitat on-site. Songbird nest boxes were erected around the property in July of 2008. Nest boxes have thus far been used by house wrens and tree swallows. The team also partnered with a local middle school in 2012 to construct and install additional nest boxes. In total, 20 nest boxes are monitored and maintained.
• Since 2010, the Menomonie Covia team has been monitoring and managing a 10-acre plot of grasslands in order to ensure that native plants thrive. The habitat supports native wildlife such as birds, bats and pollinators. 
• For the team’s bat project, they partnered with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, who provided technical guidance for building and installing bat boxes. Boxes are installed at three off-site locations: Menomonie Middle School, Wakanda Elementary School and Downsville Elementary School. All three locations are ideal due to their proximity to forested areas and freshwater bodies and are monitored for bat presence throughout the year. In addition to monitoring the bat roosts, the Covia team has acquired an Echo Meter Touch and use it to record and identify bat calls in two locations in Downsville. 
• Covia has partnered with Menomonie Middle School to host Earth Day formal learning activities on-site. Students created stem bundle bee habitats, which were placed in the small pollinator garden. The students learned about native plants and wildlife, especially pollinators. They also assisted in maintenance of the pollinator garden areas.