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| An aerial view of a creek flanked by prairie buffer owned by the New Melleray Abbey. (Photo by (Nick Rohlman, The Gazette) |
Trappist monks living at New Melleray Abbey in Peosta, Iowa, fulfill part of their vocation through land conservation efforts, such as dam and prairie restoration, working with timber and crafting sustainably made caskets," reports Olivia Cohen for the Gazette, which serves central-eastern Iowa.
The New Melleray property encompasses approximately 1,400-acres of land, which includes numerous creeks. The Abbey’s full-time forester, John Schroeder, and volunteers have made several dams that "mimic a natural beaver dam, slowing the water, tapping sediment and fostering a healthy wetland habitat," Cohen explains.
The monks have also built prairies "throughout the property, which act as a buffer for the nutrient runoff that comes from their neighbors, who farm the land with more traditional agricultural practices," Cohen adds. The prairies have brought ring-necked pheasants, turkey vultures and bald eagles back to the area.
The monks use the timber from their land to craft handmade caskets, which are shipped around the world. "Since its inception in 1999, Trappist Caskets has produced about 2,000 high-quality, handmade wooden caskets built from sustainably harvested wood from their forest each year," Cohen reports. Casket sales are the group's primary source of income.
Schroeder said that "forestry and monastery labor work well together because they are both 'focused on the long term,'" Cohen writes. "It 'makes forestry a natural fit for the Trappists.'"
from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/P49Ojp5 Iowa Trappists incorporate land stewardship and casket-making into their spiritual vocations - Entrepreneur Generations
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