October 22, 2004—Forty organizations were honored October 14 and 15 in Washington, DC, for their outstanding waste reduction efforts at EPA’s WasteWise Tenth Annual Meeting and Awards Ceremony. The awards honored these groups’ commitment to preventing waste, recycling, and buying recycled products.
WasteWise, a voluntary partnership program launched in 1994, has reported reductions of 73 million tons of waste through prevention and recycling efforts. EPA also estimates that since the program’s inception, partners have prevented the emissions of more than 39 million tons of greenhouse gases, similar to removing 31 million cars from the road for one year.
This year’s WasteWise Hall of Fame acknowledged two partners that have continually reported outstanding waste reduction results throughout their tenure in the program. This is the highest honor members can achieve. These partners continue to identify innovative waste reduction strategies and serve as role models to other WasteWise partners.
- General Motors Corp. (GM) was recognized for introducing a resource management program that compensates waste contractors for achieving the organization’s waste reduction goals, rather than just for hauling away debris. This resource management program has reduced waste 42 percent at many GM facilities.
- King County, Washington, was honored for its extraordinary strides in green building initiatives, as evidenced by its achievement of a 97 percent reuse and recycling rate for the Kingdome demolition project in Seattle.
The 2004 Partners of the Year were:
- Very Large Organization: Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.
Large Organization: Pitney Bowes Inc.
Midsize Organization: Guardian Automotive – Ligonier Plant
Small Organization: Genzyme Corporation
Federal Government: U.S. Postal Service – Northeast Area
State Government: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control
Tribal Government: Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation – Tribal Transfer Station
Local Government: Kitsap County, Washington
University/College: Miami University
School/School District: Los Angeles Unified School District – Office of Environmental Health and Safety Non-Profit: Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Challenge: Jackson State University Computer Recycling Program
Climate Change: Guardian Automotive – Ligonier Plant
Endorser: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control
For a complete listing of the 40 organizations that received awards, and for further information about EPA’s WasteWise program, contact the WasteWise Helpline at 800/EPA-WISE (1-800/372-9473).
