'Win-win': Putting goats to work

"This project has been my baa-baa-by," jokes Michael Juers, facilities manager for the nonprofit Christian Aid on Fifth Street Extended, where, for the past two weeks, a herd of 50 goats have been hard at work clearing an overgrown hillside.

Juers says he'd grown frustrated while getting bids for clearing the hillside that slopes down to a playing field used by a variety of local sports organizations. Estimates for traditional clearing were coming in at more than $10,000, and there was the matter of toxic chemicals being used so close to a stream that crosses the property. Enter Goat Busters, a local firm that puts goats to work doing what they do best: eating everything.

The organization offered Christian Aid, which supports nearly 3,000 ministries around the globe, a nonprofit discount, and the eventual cost of around $2,000, Juers says, was an added benefit.

Watching the goats lounging in tall grass or under brush, relaxing and eating simultaneously, Juers smiles.

"It's win-win for everyone," he says.