Cummins Employees Improve Environment One Mussel and Bee at a Time

Cummins Inc. employees are using mussels and bees to help achieve the company’s sustainability strategy and make a difference on the environment.

This fall, employees with the power technology leader gathered in Columbus, Indiana, to help transplant kidneyshell mussels into the Mississippi River basin. The project was part of Cummins Water Works and led by experts from The Nature Conservancy.

Cummins Water Works is the company program to address the global water crisis. It established a partnership with The Nature Conservancy to improve water quality in the Mississippi River Basin.

Cummins employees can dedicate to community service up to four hours on company time and longer with the approval of their supervisor.

A LITTLE MUSSEL CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE

The kidneyshell mussel is a medium to large, freshwater mussel, similar to the shape of a kidney. They grow to about 12 centimeters (5 inches), and are great indicators of environmental health, with some species living to 100 years.

The mussels eat algae and bacteria, cleaning and filtering water of pollutants, resulting in healthier aquatic ecosystems. Their complex life cycle provides a meaningful snapshot of waterway health conditions.

“Not having seen mussels before, it was eye-opening how important a role these tiny creatures, a seemingly passive organism, can play in local ecology,” said Akash Desai, Engine Optimization Senior Technical Specialist at Cummins and one of the employees taking part.

Small, flexible, colored, plastic tags were applied to the shell of the mussels, which included an individual number for each mussel to be identified and measured. Some mussels were also outfitted with Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags glued onto their shells.

These tags can be read with a bar code-type reader to detect a mussel’s location. Since mussels can bury themselves in riverbeds, a PIT tag helps researchers find a subset of the mollusk months or years after reintroduction.

More than 400 mussels were tagged and successfully placed in Wildcat Creek in the Mississippi River Basin by representatives of The Nature Conservancy and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. 

After the mussels have been in their new surroundings for six months, they will be recovered and measured again to determine their growth and survival rates.

KEEPING BEES HUMMING IN GERMANY, NORWAY

Over recent decades, bee populations around the world have been declining due to habitat loss, air pollution, changes in weather patterns and the excessive use of agrochemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers.

Studies show a lack of honeybees in agricultural areas is limiting the supply of some food crops, suggesting the decline in these pollinators may soon have serious ramifications for global food security and the maintenance of biodiversity.

In Germany, Cummins employees developed five bee colonies behind the Cummins Emission Solutions (CES) plant in Marktheidenfeld. Three team members also serve as beekeepers, inspecting hives, conducting bee population counts and removing honeycombs.

So far this year, the hives have produced 98 kilograms (216 pounds) of spring honey and 46 kilograms (101 pounds) of summer honey, offered to employees for a donation and given away to local community partners.

Employee volunteers in Norway built six bumblebee boxes and planted bee-friendly flowers to support bee colony growth. The team maintained the boxes while weeding and watering the surrounding plants.

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