Alliant Energy Awards Grants to Delaware County Fairgrounds & Dyersville to Plant Trees

Grants have been awarded to the Delaware County Fairgrounds and the Dyersville community to plant trees.

The grants come from Alliant Energy through the company’s Community Tree Planting Program. Alliant Energy partners with Trees Forever to help communities develop, select and plant a diverse mix of trees. A tree expert works with the communities to select the best species for their areas and create care and maintenance plans to ensure the new trees have long, healthy lives.   

The Delaware County Fairgrounds in Manchester has been awarded 25 trees as part of their ongoing effort to restore their tree population. Fair Manager Jeannie Domeyer says over the past several years, they have removed around 60 trees due to damage from the emerald ash borer. Through grant funding, they began replacing those losses by planting 32 trees last year, and this year, thanks to the support of Alliant Energy and Trees Forever, they have received an additional 25 trees. The goal is to plant these trees in locations on the fairgrounds that provide meaningful benefits, including creating shade to help cool buildings, reducing direct sunlight into non-air-conditioned structures, and minimizing heat on the roofs of air-conditioned facilities. They are focusing on planting deciduous trees and are intentionally selecting a diverse mix of species beyond the typical oak and maple varieties. By increasing the diversity of their tree population, they aim to reduce the risk of significant loss should another disease or pest impact our area in the future. The Delaware County Fairgrounds will be hosting a community planting day on April 19th – they welcome anyone who would like to volunteer and be part of this effort.

And Dyersville will use their grant to plant trees near the new child care center in the 20 West Industrial Park on the west end of town. City officials say they are still ironing out the details of the types and number of trees. Dyersville also plans to schedule a community tree planting day and will be looking for volunteers to help, with more details to come.

photo courtesy of Alliant Energy