[PCA] NEWS: AZA starts wildlife friendly yard program

[Olivia Kwong]

Just FYI, I got this blurb about American Zoological Association's
wildlife friendly yard program.

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AZA Spearheads Wildlife-Friendly Yard Program
As Part of Wonders of Water Campaign

The AZA is spearheading a wildlife-friendly yard program as part of its
Wonders of Water Campaign.   The program will focus attention on important
issues surrounding the health of our waterways and provide people with a
way to take action.  By encouraging people of all ages to help make their
own yards more friendly for wildlife, we will be helping make habitats
"downstream" from our lawns healthier for animals like otters, salmon,
whales, manatees, and even catfish.  AZA zoos and aquariums are encouraged
to distribute yard signs to visitors who are willing to pledge to make
their yards wildlife-friendly and to provide information and resources to
help guests fulfill this pledge.

Implementing the Wildlife Friendly Yard Program
Our goal is to help people make the connection between their lawn and
aquatic wildlife -- whether this aquatic wildlife is in the nearby river,
or in the ocean.  We hope that native plant groups will begin to support
this worthwhile endeavor by encouraging their members to sign the pledge
and commit to make their yards wildlife-friendly by adopting easy but
environmentally friendly lawn and garden practices such as using
wildlife-friendly fertilizers and pesticides and planting native plants
and grasses.

Wildlife Friendly Yard Packets
AZA will send you with all the materials you need to implement and
distribute the Wildlife Friendly Yard Project with your members or to
individuals who are interested. If you would like more information about
the Wildlife Friendly Yard program, please contact Dot Siegfried at AZA
(301-562-0777 x254) or email dsiegfried at aza.org.