The City of Calgary and The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo are turning trimmed tree branches into habitat logs and fresh snacks for zoo animals. City tree workers completed the project under the newly established Calgary Zoo urban tree recycling initiative.
First, Calgary Parks crews regularly remove dead, dying, or dangerous trees to keep the public safe and protect the urban forest. However, instead of taking cleared materials straight to city compost sites, urban forestry crews now transport logs, branches, and leafy foliage directly to animal care teams.
As a result, the recycled wood enriches the daily routines of giraffes, moose, camels, gorillas, monkeys, and hippos. For instance, heavy logs now double as climbing structures and habitat furniture, while leafy branches give animals fresh opportunities to forage and play.
In addition, hundreds of dedicated zoo volunteers helped process and move the materials. Specifically, volunteers stripped branches of leaves, sorted the wood, and packed transport trucks. Ultimately, the team created 304 bags of fresh leafy food, 10 filled storage barrels, 1.5 truckloads of bagged branches, and dozens of large habitat logs.
“The urban forest plays an important role in Calgary’s quality of life. This partnership shows how we can continue generating value even after a tree’s lifecycle has ended,” said Wayne Driscoll, Urban Forestry Superintendent at Calgary Parks. “By connecting City operations with community partners, we are advancing sustainability, reducing waste, and creating meaningful benefits for both people and animals.”
Furthermore, zoo staff feed invasive caragana plants—cleared during park maintenance—to resident giraffes as an extra snack.
Finally, officials encourage Calgarians to follow the Calgary Parks and Calgary Zoo social media pages over the coming weeks to watch the animals enjoy their repurposed forest homes.
