Nathan Leyburn, a 45-year-old man from Maryland, taking a break from a conference in Kansas City, Missouri, was enjoying downtown's Berkley Riverfront Park on Saturday. 20 minutes into his walk, he noticed a large, fenced-in patch of grasses filled with goats, contentedly grazing like guests at an all-natural buffet. Leyburn already knew why the goats were there.
“I’ve seen the same thing in Baltimore for areas that are hard to get to for mowers," he said. "They have goats out there just eating away all the sometimes invasive plants.”
For three years, Berkley Riverfront Park has hosted a herd of goats from the Goats Gone Green LLC, to tend to the grass and shrubbery along the Missouri River bank. Sponsored by Port KC, it’s an eco-friendly solution to remove unwanted vegetation along the river trail. A total of 40 goats are making a temporary home on the two acres of enclosed land west of the Heart of America Bridge, munching on pink honeydew, weeds and thin branches.
Port KC Communications Director Meredith Hoenes said goats were a safer option than having humans care for the land because of the animals' ability to maneuver there, among other things.
“One of the reasons is it gets really rocky and the terrain gets steep because it sits on the Missouri River,” said Hoenes.
In addition, she said Port KC wanted a more natural method of clearing vegetation, one that limits the use of harmful pesticides.
The goats also help Port KC tackle unreachable garbage sitting high up in the trees and shrubs.
“When the goats came through the first year, we found a rocking chair that was mixed in, we found pens and blankets ... and left behind food products," Hoenes said. "It really helped us be able to clean the area up.”
Beth Ott walks her medium-sized brown dog down to the riverfront from time to time. She said she was grateful the goats are trimming back the vegetation. It makes her feel safer, more secure.
“You don’t want it to get too overgrown, especially (if you’re here) at night,” she said. “Being a single woman, if you want to be jogging on the trail, you don’t want anything to hinder you from, you know, to make it unsafe.”
Typically, walking the riverfront area closest to CPKC Stadium because of how clear it is, she’s excited to have more of the riverfront to safely explore.
“I think it’s amazing!” said Ott gleefully. “I came down here because I thought they were cute, but if they’re serving a purpose, I think that's amazing and even better!”
The goats will remain on the riverfront through early to mid-June.
