OREANDA-NEWS. About 40 volunteers from Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s (MPC’s) refinery in Detroit, Mich., Brand Marketing organization, local community groups and nearby neighborhoods devoted their time to plant trees and flowers, all in an effort to help the ongoing transformation of the Oakwood Heights neighborhood into a public green space.

The neighborhood is adjacent to the refinery property. MPC’s Detroit Heavy Oil Upgrade Project, completed in 2012, moved the refinery’s footprint closer to the neighborhood, so in 2013, MPC completed a program that provided above-market purchase prices and other financial reimbursements to Oakwood Heights homeowners who wished to sell their homes and move away. The company then demolished the homes, and the properties are now well-maintained green space.

In order to further benefit the community, the refinery’s employees plan to work toward certifying part of the area by the Wildlife Habitat Council in 2016. This volunteer event was part of that work. Volunteers planted 100 trees and 300 wildflowers on part of the MPC-owned land.