MPLX team helping grow Louisville’s future, one tree at a time

Community News

Logistics, MPLX
Members of the Environmental division of MPLX’s Crude Oil and Product Logistics Environmental and Safety team pose for a photo after partnering with TreesLouisville in April to plant 75 trees at Doss High School in Louisville, Kentucky.

Key Points

  • Employees from MPLX’s Crude Oil and Product Logistics (COPL) operations, part of the midstream segment of Marathon Petroleum, partnered with TreesLouisville on Earth Day to plant 75 trees at Doss High School in Louisville, Kentucky.
  • Tree planting supports long-term environmental benefits, including improved air quality, stormwater management and added shade for the community.
  • The hands-on volunteer project allowed employees to support sustainability efforts while helping grow Louisville’s urban tree canopy.

Employees from MPLX’s Crude Oil and Product Logistics (COPL) operations, part of the midstream segment of Marathon Petroleum, recently partnered with TreesLouisville on Earth Day to plant 75 trees at Doss High School in Louisville, Kentucky, supporting efforts to grow the city’s urban tree canopy and create long-term environmental benefits for the community. The hands-on community service project took place during the COPL Environmental and Safety team’s annual meeting in Louisville.

: A group of employee volunteers poses outdoors during a community tree-planting event.
Volunteers from the Operations division of MPLX’s Crude Oil and Product Logistics Environment and Safety team gather for a group photo alongside TreesLouisville.

“Projects like this are a great example of how we can work together to create lasting environmental and community impact,” said COPL Environmental Director Angela Brown. “It was rewarding to see employees from Environmental, Safety and Operations come together to help grow something that will benefit the community for generations to come.”

Employee volunteers work together outdoors to plant trees during a community service event.
Crude Oil and Product Logistics employee volunteers work together to plant new trees at a Louisville, Kentucky, high school during a team-building event.

The event also marked a full-circle moment for one of the first schools that TreesLouisville ever supported, reconnecting the organization with a neighborhood closely tied to its early history.

As the trees mature, they are expected to provide shade and cooling, help reduce the urban heat island effect, intercept stormwater runoff and improve air quality. They will also help create a more comfortable environment for students, staff and neighbors.

A group of employee volunteers pauses for a photo during an outdoor tree-planting event.
Crude Oil and Product Logistics employee volunteers: (L to R) Josh Hurn, Caleb Blackburn, Brandon Brown, Erika Distel, Heather Leiter and Chris Sah.

“Getting the chance to be hands-on during the planting made the experience especially rewarding,” said COPL Senior Environmental Specialist Gary Russell. “Knowing these trees will continue benefiting the school and surrounding community for years to come made it something everyone could feel proud to be part of.”

“Projects like this are a great example of how we can work together to create lasting environmental and community impact.”

Throughout the event, TreesLouisville staff guided volunteers through planting techniques and shared best practices to help give each tree the strongest possible start.

Crude Oil and Product Logistics employee volunteer, Erika Distel, puts the final touches on one of dozens of new trees planted on the campus. A look at the final result, showing some of the newly planted trees lining the high school campus.