Tired of hearing about the green movement? Metalcaster John Patrick isn’t, according to an article from the Kansas City Star. The newspaper indicates that Patrick’s employer, Clay & Bailey Manufacturing Co., Kansas City, Mo., has gotten involved in a project to clean up the neighboring Blue River.

The story begins: “John R. Patrick envisions a new Blue River flowing past his metal-casting plant, with clear water and shady hiking trails. That takes a lot of imagination for the comptroller of the 95-year-old Clay & Bailey Manufacturing Co., one of the few survivors in Kansas City from the steel and iron works heyday, an era that decimated the river.”

What role (if any) the metalcasting industry might have played in the original pollution of the river is unclear. So the fact that Clay & Bailey is helping correct the problem is all the more impressive. It’s a proactive move when it’s easier to be reactive, and it deserves commendation.