OVER THE EDGE November 21-December 5, 2007 >>The Green Front Booth Talks Gangsters and Goats JENNIFER MCLENNAN AND Jessica Scumit CoLumnists Recently, we Green Fronters had | a discussion with Annie Booth, one of four faculty members on the Green University Committee. The highlights of our conversa- tion centered around inmates and goats. Although these two may seem like unlikely research assist- ants, both are involved in Green _tesearch projects happening at UNBC. In terms of inmates, we dis- cussed Annie’s involvement with the Prince George Northern Sustainable Landscape _ Initia- tive (PGNSLI). Recently, the re- search grant for this project was extended, making it a $520,000 five year project set to conclude in 2008. The PGNSLI focuses on improving landscaping around Prince George to include plants indigenous to the North. This ef- fort will result in less maintenance needed, less fertilizer and chem- icals used to enhance growth and preserve plants, and less mowing required. Test sites have been es- tablished along University drive, Massey drive and most notably, in the beautiful space of the Bentley Centre at UNBC. The city, other municipalities and NGOs among other actors are working with con- junction with the university to es- tablish more sustainable landscap- ing practices in the North. Another notable actor is the Prince George Corrections Facility, which is providing the “voluntary” labour needed for the project. This project will continue to be key in establish- ing UNBC as a leader in sustain- ability efforts in the community of Prince George. Another aspect of Annie’s re- search in environmentally friendly landscaping practice is the use of goats as weed control. This past summer, goats were used around sewage ponds in the city of Prince George to control weeds which were otherwise inaccessible. They seem to be especially fond of this- tle, notorious for its ability to defy traditional means of weed eradica- tion. The goats also proved to be very efficient at reproducing. Start- ing the summer with four goats, the herd has recently reached 11: busy ladies! In terms of obstacles to expanding this unconventional yet so far highly successful meth- od of weed control, there are two major concerns: portable corrals and waste management. As goats are quite spry creatures, effective means of containing them must be implemented for their own safety. Annie sees waste management as an acceptable by-product as it bio- degrades over time, and acts as nat- ural fertilizer. Should students be interested in involving themselves (with either gangsters or goats), opportunities exist. The PGNSLI has funding for student employment, and An- nie herself is seeking goat-friendly research assistants for the spring. Contact annie@unbe.ca if interest- ed in either position. When asked for three words which describe green initiatives at UNBC and in the greater Prince George com- munity, Annie gave the following: “It’s about time”. How true. Professor Annie Booth has spearheaded much of the work for UN- BC’s Green initiative. gy HE 4 f try bret UyAgss a > Pniversity of Aartaera Bates LHe sie S SOR -PaorTo couRTESY of Mirch GRANT es platen TERS! Sundied aoa dvi aaa est BETES ar SPs ks HUMES ort PS ig PE Ee Seer PICK HARRIS MP CRS Pine ep - 3 Big money for UNBC’s Low Impact Landscaping Initiative. ~PHoros COURTESY OF Mircn Grant