WMOC Community Relations Manager (right), Michelle Clark, and U.S. Conference of
Mayors Director of the City Livability Awards Program (left), Jocelyn Bogen, present
Irvine Mayor Beth Krom with a City Livability Award.

IRVINE, Oct. 16, 2006 - Just as Waste Management converts land once used for landfills into parks, baseball fields or golf courses, the City of Irvine changed abandoned, undeveloped easement land into an attractive, educational – and, most importantly – "edible" park.

For this effort in creating the Incredible Edible Park, the City of Irvine was recognized by the United States Conference of Mayors and Waste Management with a City Livability Award for cities with a population greater than 100,000.

In this national competition, Irvine was the only city in California to be honored with a City Livability Award. The awards were announced on June 3, and Irvine Mayor Beth Krom accepted the trophy on behalf of the city at the council meeting on Sept. 26. Jocelyn Bogen, Director of the City Livability Awards Program for the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and Michelle Clark, Community Relations Manager for Waste Management of Orange County, presented the award.

In 1999 A.G. Kawamura, then a farmer and now California’s secretary of agriculture, approached the City of Irvine with the idea of using the undeveloped easement land for an “edible” park. In February 2000 the concept was presented to the city council. City staff was charged with engaging the community – support was unanimous for the Incredible Edible Park, so a pilot program was developed and implemented. The park converted approximately 7.5 acres of fallow ground located on easement property leased by the city (which generated $4,500 a year in weed abatement expenses) into an attractive, educational park that would also provide produce to Orange County’s needy populations.

More then 10,000 people have volunteered their time to help plant and harvest the produce, including 4,000 local students who are able to learn in a “living environment” about food production and nutrition. More than one million pounds of fresh produce have been provided to more than 200,000 people every month. The food collected is accessible to more than 390 non-profit agencies including soup kitchens in Orange County, through the Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County.

"Waste Management is proud to serve as a sponsor of these awards and we’re even more excited that one of the cities we serve is a recipient of a City Livability Award," said Clark. "The Incredible Edible Park is just one example of the creative ways in which the City of Irvine approaches issues within the community to resolve them in a manner that will benefit many people in a sustainable way."