LG&E and KU work to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth through programs and partnerships that protect the air, land and waters our ecosystems need to survive. We are protecting biodiversity and promoting environmental stewardship in a number of ways:

• Preserving Nature in Trimble County — The company set aside more than 100 acres of ecologically sensitive land — wetlands and bottomland woods — as a nature reserve at our Trimble County Generating station. Abundant wildlife, including red foxes, raccoons, opossums and white-tailed deer, inhabit the area. Employees at the station also have installed wood duck boxes along Corn Creek to provide nesting sites.
• Providing Shelter for the Peregrine Falcon — In cooperation with local and state wildlife agencies, LG&E and KU have placed wooden platforms, known as "nesting boxes," at several generation facilities. The boxes provide potential nesting sites for peregrine falcons. In fact, more than 40 peregrine falcons have hatched and been banded at LG&E and KU locations since 2007.
• Supporting Raptor Rehab — As an extension of LG&E and KU's avian protection program, the companies provide support to Raptor Rehab, a non-profit organization that rehabilitates injured raptors, raises orphaned birds of prey, and increases public awareness about the importance of raptors. View a brief interview on Raptor Rehab's mission and learn more about the organization's partnership with LG&E and KU.
  
  
• Reforesting the Bluegrass — We have offered free tree seedlings to customers since 1981, giving away more than 750,000 seedlings during that time. The company also participates in the Reforest the Bluegrass program and has donated more than $20,000 during the past 10 years.
  
  The giveaway program supports our advice on planting trees — Right Tree, Right Place. Planting the right tree in the right place is important because the proper location helps keep limbs away from electric lines as the tree matures and reduces the possibility of outages. The seedlings we give away include redbuds and a variety of dogwoods — trees that are power-line friendly.
  
  Falling tree limbs on lines is a major cause of power outages. Planting seedlings in the proper location also provides shade for houses which, over the long term, helps reduce energy costs.
• Encouraging the Growth of Native Plants — LG&E and KU have surveyed hundreds of miles of electric transmission rights-of-way in its service territory and identified populations of native flowers and grasses. Certain utility rights-of-way have been found to provide ecological conditions that allow native species to thrive, and maintenance practices are in place to help facilitate their growth. We also participate in the reintroduction of native grasses and wildflowers within its service territory.
• Removing Debris from the Ohio River Banks — In 1995, the company became a corporate sponsor of the Ohio River Sweep. Since that time, volunteers across a multi-state region have removed thousands of tons of litter and debris from the banks of the Ohio River. In addition to the company's financial support, a large group of company volunteers participate in the River Sweep each year.
• Beautifying Statewide Nonprofit, Public Park Facilities — Good deeds meet community needs each year when hundreds of LG&E and KU employees and their family members fan out across the state to participate in improvement activities as part of the companies' annual Day of Caring. The Day of Caring is the pinnacle event of LG&E's and KU's annual Power of One Campaign that began in 2005. The Power of One Campaign is an annual employee giving program that has raised more than $11 million to support more than 27 nonprofit organizations throughout the LG&E and KU service territories.
• Recycling Old Electronic Equipment — LG&E and KU employees collected more than 82,000 pounds of old electronic equipment from home and work for recycling during two "E-Cycle" events held at various offices, operations centers, generating stations and other locations company wide.
  
  Employees dropped off old computers, printers, TVs, radios, CDs and DVDs, stereos, cable boxes, electronic cords and even garage-door remotes among other items. They drove vans, pickup trucks and SUVs filled with materials to drop-off sites throughout both campaigns.
  
  A regional recycling company, 2TRG, collected all items for recycling. LG&E and KU launched the campaigns as another step to keep our environment safe and clean. Old electronic equipment contains toxins which could be harmful to human health and our environment if released into surrounding eco-systems.
• Creating More Energy Efficient Communities — Through initiatives such as Empower Lexington and Partnership for a Green City in Louisville, LG&E and KU are collaborating with stakeholders to help the communities they serve use energy more wisely.
• Assisting with Research Project for Endangered Indiana Bat — LG&E is lending a helping hand to researchers studying the endangered Indiana bat at Fort Knox in Kentucky. Company crews installed artificial roosting structures that allow researchers to learn more about Indiana bat maternity colonies. Utility poles have been fitted with artificial bark to supplement and eventually replace the existing roost trees over time. Should the research prove successful, the implications will be wide-ranging in terms of conservation, research, management, regulation and mitigation for the species.