Western Sand & Gravel (WS&G) mines sand and gravel to make concrete or a variety of spec materials such as plaster sand or masonry sand for construction. The main goal is to produce aggregate for NEBCO’s Ready Mixed operations as well as supply sand and gravel to Southeast Nebraska and the Lincoln area. Throughout the years, the mining process has created an ideal habitat for birds, most notably, the Least Tern and the Piping Plover that are listed on the federally endangered and threatened species lists.
“There is an abundance of fine sands,” said Dave B., General Manager of Western Sand & Gravel. “We end up wasting it back on the property near the lake and it really mimics the Platte River to the birds.”
With minimal extra care by Western Sand & Gravel employees, a variety of bird species benefit from the activities of mining at sand and gravel pits.
In addition to years of partnering with and supporting the Tern & Plover Conservation Partnership at the University of Nebraska, Western Sand & Gravel recently began working with the Wildlife Division of the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission. In January, the National Audubon Society put on the nation’s annual largest-running citizen science birding project known as the Christmas Bird count. For the first time, the organization conducted a bird count along the Lower Platte River, including WS&G’s Sand Creek, Sandy Pointe and Louisville sites.
The three WS&G sites within the Lower Platte River Christmas Bird Count ended up being some of the few areas with open water. Sandy Pointe and Louisville both had patches of open water with a good number of geese and ducks. Sand Creek did not have any open water but included thousands of Mallards and Canada Geese on the ice. In total, 36 species were observed in the area.
| Species: | # | Species: | # | Species: | # | ||
| Mallard Duck | 10,543 | Common Goldeneye | 12 | Greater White-fronted Goose | 2 | ||
| Canada Goose | 3,586 | House Sparrow | 12 | Northern Harrier | 2 | ||
| American Tree Sparrow | 394 | Eastern Bluebird | 8 | Merlin | 2 | ||
| Dark-eyed Junco | 256 | Cackling Goose | 6 | Black-capped Chickadee | 2 | ||
| American Crow | 70 | Northern Cardinal | 6 | White-breasted Nuthatch | 2 | ||
| Common Merganser | 37 | Red-tailed Hawk | 5 | American Wigeon | 1 | ||
| Meadowlark | 32 | Snow Goose | 4 | Green-winged Teal | 1 | ||
| American Goldfinch | 32 | Blue Jay | 4 | Great Blue Heron | 1 | ||
| Harris’s Sparrow | 18 | Redhead | 3 | Downy Woodpecker | 1 | ||
| Eurasian Collared-Dove | 17 | Rough-legged Hawk | 3 | Northern Flicker | 1 | ||
| Bald Eagle | 16 | Rock Pigeon | 3 | Horned Lark | 1 | ||
| European Starling | 15 | Red-winged Blackbird | 3 | Song Sparrow | 1 |