Waterloo Awarded MidAmerican Energy Trees Please! Grant

Representatives from MidAmerican Energy Company presented a grant check in the amount of $5,000 to the city of Waterloo on April 29, 2019


The grant is part of the MidAmerican Energy’s Trees Please! energy efficiency program. The program will allow Waterloo to fund tree planting projects in common areas such as publicly owned properties, schools and community spaces.

Trees have a wealth of benefits. When incorporated into an energy-efficient landscape design, trees can improve energy efficiency by serving as natural windbreaks in the winter and providing shade to homes and businesses in the summer. Planting trees also improves air quality and helps to protect and nourish the soil.

“These grant funds will be used to plant 50 trees in Hope Martin Park to replace the 65 infested ash trees that were removed from the park last winter,” says Todd Derifield, Forester for the City of Waterloo. “Because of MidAmerican Energy’s generous gift, Hope Martin Park will be more aesthetically pleasing for park users.”

Waterloo is one of 61 Iowa cities and community organizations receiving grants through the Trees Please! program. Grant recipients were selected based on the individual merits of the project, the benefit to the community, and the ability to obtain matching funds.