Goats contracted to clear O'Hare vegetation

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CHICAGO, May 8 (UPI) -- Chicago's O'Hare International Airport says a herd of goats owned by a restaurant will be brought in to clear vegetation.

The city Department of Aviation has made an agreement with Central Commissary Holdings LLC, which owns the Lincoln Park restaurant Butcher & The Burger, to bring 25 goats onto the airport's land to clear about 250 square feet of vegetation per day, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday. The goats currently live on a farm in the wealthy Chicago suburb of Barrington.

Joseph Arnold, partner at Butcher & The Burger, said the eatery and butcher shop obtained the goats but soon decided "a goat burger wouldn't be on the menu."

"When [the city] put the bid out, we thought it was a really cool local, sustainable idea. We're all from Chicago, and this is the type of thing we're all about," Arnold said.

Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino said the areas being targeted by the program are difficult to clear with landscaping machinery due to rocky terrain, hilly areas and dense brush.