B-F Online

The BF Online team cleaned up Beargrass Creek Park for their Earth Day project. The team spent a muddy afternoon picking up plastic, cans and glass for the entire area - especially near the roadside and along the creek, where people tend to throw garbage without realizing the harm they are causing to the environment. Much of the debris had been there so long, that branches had grown over and around it.

The team challenged themselves to find the largest piece of garbage, while picking up the smaller bits. Among the debris were two tires and an old road sign from the area! But, the highlight of the day was when the group found a huge carpet that was rolled up and half-buried under the earth. Undeterred by the piles of bricks and debris on top of the carpet, the group worked valiantly to remove the carpet.

The small group was reminded just how important it is to keep our parks and water-ways clean when a pair of ducks was spotted resting near the creek.

Finlandia Brand Team

The Finlandia Brand team collected nearly ten bags of trash from Fisherman’s Park in nearby Jeffersontown. The team faced harsh elements including thorns, broken glass and a four-foot grass carp that looked like the Loch Ness Monster. It was true team dedication to the Earth day cause!

Legal Department

The Legal Department Earth Day Team hosted a department “lunch and learn” during which the group viewed a water-related film which illustrated how the destruction of the wetlands around New Orleans contributed to the massive destruction that resulted from Hurricane Katrina. It was a vivid reminder that our earth can become very fragile when we interfere with nature.

The team then participated in a Brightside cleanup collecting large bags of mostly non-biodegradable trash from the bike path area near Beargrass Creek. The cleanup crew endured muddy conditions, trash and debris but enjoyed both a beautiful day and the fact that they were ridding the area of trash that could be swept by the creek’s current into yet another waterway.

All department participants now have a greater awareness of water-related issues and the need to be ever mindful of the use and conservation of precious natural resources.

Louisville Production Operations (LPO)

The LPO team braved some chilly weather to help clean up Beargrass Creek Park for their Earth day activity. With several dedicated volunteers the team picked up trash in the park, helping clean up the grounds for future visitors.

Woodford Reserve & Corporate Engineering

Woodford Reserve and the Corporate Engineering Group formed a joint team to participate in Earth Day activities. The group performed two tasks adhering to the water conservation theme of Earth Day 2008:

• Performing a water usage audit for the entire property, including production operations, the visitor center, conference center, and cottage.
• Performing a cleanup along the banks of Grassy Springs on Brown-Forman property.

The team identified and provided estimated flow rates for all water usage points in their assigned areas as part of the water usage audit. The cleanup of Grassy Springs, which resulted in enough trash and debris to fill up two full six-cubic yard dumpsters, was hard work but especially rewarding. The group collected enough discarded miscellaneous car parts to almost assemble a complete car: bumpers, steering wheel, four tires, fenders, and a grill!

All participants reported gaining a greater understanding and appreciation for water, and how it is used at Woodford Reserve. The water usage audit will give the Engineering Group and Woodford Reserve personnel an opportunity to identify potential water reduction projects. Additionally, the cleanup of the banks of Grassy Springs improved the aesthetics of the property, and reinforces pride and quality in the Woodford Reserve brand.

Research & Development

Representatives from the Brown-Forman Research and Development Group met at Lannan Park on the banks of the Ohio River for their Earth Day activity. The group volunteered to help with a community wide “Xstream cleanup” of the waterways organized by Living Lands and Waters.

The day’s efforts resulted in collecting 58 garbage bags, three old tires, a shopping cart and two motorcycle frames, and much more! Even a small group can make a big impact!

Southern Comfort and Developing Brands Teams

The SoCo & Developing Brands Earth Day Team members volunteered for a cleanup at Eva Bandman Park on River Road. A recent flash flood in Kentucky a couple of weeks before had littered the park and adjacent soccer fields with debris and garbage from the Ohio River. It was still quite wet and muddy but the team jumped in right away and started cleaning up the litter.

They scoured the muddy grounds and ventured behind bushes to pick up the trash. The team found bottles, tires, aluminum cans, and a tire rim. The group was amazed how much trash was in the park, including golf balls and even a few golf clubs. They figured someone must have had a bad game! Several hours later with 20 bags of trash and loaded trashcans, the team completed their task.

At the end of the day, the park was spotless and ready for the youngsters to get back to their soccer games once the fields dried out.

Team Mexico

The team representing Casa Herradura focused on water quality in Mexico, a relevant topic for a country that largely lacks potable tap water and integrated development and management of waste water treatment plants. Recently in the state of Jalisco, a child was fatally poisoned by toxins in the water after falling into the Santiago River, a body of water that has been polluted extensively by effluents from factories in an industrial area outside of Guadalajara. It is an issue that has caused great alarm and concern among citizens, environmental groups and government agencies.

Team Mexico developed an educational plan to address the importance of water quality and the role waste water treatment plants play in cleaning and making effluents safe for discharge into the environment without causing adverse effects.

For their project, the team gave a presentation that explores the theme of water quality and explains the step-by-step process of waste water treatment at Casa Herradura. The presentation and subsequent discussions also touched on the need for people to help keep water free of pollutants by choosing biodegradable and non-toxic natural products, diverting food and cooking oil to composting piles, and reusing/recycling water as much as possible before it becomes an effluent.

The presentation has been shared with employees from across the organization who are interested in understanding our responsibility as a company to protect natural resources and the communities in which we operate.

Brown-Forman Hamburg Team

The Brown-Forman team in Hamburg supports a project through the German Water Foundation to provide clean water to people in Ethiopia. The program works by providing funds to purchase donkeys that carry the water to and from villages. By doing so, the donkeys release women and young girls who currently have to carry the water for miles, which can be detrimental to their health.

Eighteen colleagues in the Hamburg office donated at least 5 EUR each, collecting more than 170EUR ($240) for the Foundation!

The program is also supported in the German market by our Finlandia Vodka “Pura Vida” campaign.

Licensing & Corporate Responsibility Teams

The Brown-Forman licensing team volunteered at nearby Bernheim Forest for their Earth Day project. The group spent the morning sowing grass seed. That doesn’t sound very exciting but to know that grass will be there for years to come and that our grandchildren or great grandchildren may one day walk on it sure is. The team commented that it was great to be able to contribute, in some small way, to the beautification and maintenance of one of Kentucky's greatest natural resources.

The volunteers had the opportunity to interact with the children who visited the forest and answer questions that ranged from what kind of grass they were using (fescue) to explaining that they weren’t putting seed down for chickens. Several visitors wanted to know if the team didn’t work there, why they were sowing grass. The team explained that this was their time to give something back to our community.

The Corporate Responsibility team worked on a separate project at Bernheim, helping to clear out overgrown parts of the forest in a controlled burn. Controlled burns allow the soil to regenerate and prepare for new growth.