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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September
20, 2018
State honors
extraordinary organizations with highest environmental award
INDIANAPOLIS:
The Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence were presented this week to honor
seven recipients for extraordinary initiatives in protecting the environment.
“I am pleased to award this year’s Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence,” said Bruno Pigott, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). “These projects demonstrate the excellent work that our Hoosier businesses, governmental agencies, organizations and communities are doing to protect and improve our environment.”
Commissioner
Pigott and Rebecca Holwerda, Senior Policy Director for Governor Eric
Holcomb, presented the awards during the 21st annual Pollution
Prevention Conference and Tradeshow held at the Marriott North in Indianapolis.
The
2018 categories and recipients are as follows:
Pollution
Prevention:
• National Office
Furniture, Jasper, Dubois County, for “Robotic
Finish Technology.” National Office Furniture implemented a manufacturing
improvement that included an innovative process that utilizes a robotic system
for applying finish to seating products.
It is one of the first of its kind in the United States in the woodworking industry. It combines multiple
advanced technologies into one line that is able to automate several steps of
the finishing process, replacing manual operations and gaining efficiencies.
The automated system utilizes radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology
throughout the finish process to distinguish color choices and seating models
being produced on the line.
This technology is a repeatable application
that improves consistency throughout the process. There is a reduction in product throughput
time and material usage. Halogen curing
ovens have replaced the older electric ovens that remained on throughout the
day to maintain temperatures. Halogen
ovens are designed for on-demand operations.
This means they operate when product is present within the oven and turn
off once target temperatures are met.
They have a quick start-up and faster cure times. Therefore, it reduces electrical consumption
over the previous conventional convection ovens. With this new robotic technology, National
Office Furniture was able to consolidate two traditional finish lines into one
state of the art automated finish application line.
Five Year
Continuous Improvement:
• Toyota Motor Manufacturing
of Indiana, Princeton, Gibson County, for “Toyota
Continuous Improvement.” Toyota Motor
Manufacturing of Indiana has been implementing various sustainability projects
over the last five years to reduce their operation’s impact on the environment. By following the plan laid out in their
Environmental Management System, the following reductions have been achieved
since 2012:
• Energy
Consumption – 42% per vehicle
• Carbon Dioxide Emissions – 31% per vehicle
• Water
Usage – 24% per vehicle
• Volatile Organic Compound Emissions – 20% per vehicle
• Waste
Generation – 19% per vehicle
• Landfill
Waste Disposal – maintained zero landfill
Energy/Renewable
Resources:
• Michigan City Area
Schools, Michigan City, LaPorte County, for “ Michigan City Area Schools Solar and LED Lighting Project 2017.” After completion of a
guaranteed energy savings project, Michigan City Area Schools (MCAS) decided to
further reduce their energy costs using solar power and light-emitting diode (LED) lighting upgrades.
The district selected Performance Services to implement a second guaranteed energy
savings project that is reducing overall electricity consumption at seven
buildings by 52 percent, saving the district a guaranteed amount of $704,672
annually. Ground-mounted solar arrays and LED lighting were installed at three
elementary schools, two middle schools, Michigan City High School and the
administration building. In addition, a customized solar curriculum program developed by
the National Energy Education Development Project and sponsored by Performance
Services was implemented at MCAS for use in classrooms across the district as a
component of the project.
Land Use/Conservation:
• Shirley Heinze Land
Trust, Valparaiso, Porter County for “Little
Calumet River Corridor.” Historically, the
Little Calumet River watershed included abundant, healthy wetland areas which
performed important hydrological and ecological functions. Shirley Heinze Land Trust, with the
support of more than 30 partner agencies and organizations, successfully spearheaded
an effort to attain the Indiana Bicentennial Nature Trust Conservation Area
designation. This project has helped to
mitigate existing habitat fragmentation and advance a broader conservation
vision. Restoration of these areas has
enhanced the quality of local waterways and contributed to good storm water
management for the community. As a part of this project, a significant portion
of the 12-mile waterway was opened for public recreation. Fall 2017 was the
first time in over three decades that paddlers could freely use the waterway.
Greening the
Government:
• City of Carmel, Carmel,
Hamilton County, for “Carmel Urban
Forestry Program.” The Carmel Urban Forestry Program directs the city’s landscaping
efforts through new private development and manages existing greenspace health
throughout all city-owned properties and right-of-ways. In 2017, Carmel Urban Forestry staff worked
with Duke Energy in implementing a plant growth regulator experiment on approximately
50 shade trees under power lines on West Main Street. These plant growth
regulators reduce the growth of canopy trees and strengthen root systems. The goal of the plant growth regulator
program is to provide the benefits of having trees, and keep them from impeding
on the utility’s right-of-way. The city
also implemented a soil sampling program to better understand how different
soils favor growth of certain types of trees.
In 2017, staff conducted sampling at 87 sites across the city and used
this data to work on problem areas.
Environmental Outreach/Education:
• LaPorte County Health
Department for “LaPorte County Property
Transfer Ordinance.” The remarkable outreach and education program created by the
LaPorte County Health Department was geared towards passing an ordinance that
would require inspection of a septic system prior to the selling/transfer of a
property. Prior to passing of the ordinance, the health department held numerous public outreach events to educate the public and businesses on the importance
of this issue.
Recycle/Reuse:
• Town of Merrillville,
Merrillville, Lake County, for “High-density
polyethylene (HDPE) Recycled
Stormwater Infrastructure Pipe Standards” The Merrillville Stormwater Utility
implemented a new standard for town-owned stormwater infrastructure projects by
incorporating pipe that contains at least 40% recycled HDPE material and meets
strict American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' standards. There were several projects
that were completed with these standards, including the pilot project which was
conducted at 58th Place and Vermont Street. The town is currently designing projects that
will invest over two million dollars in improvements and have a master plan that
will require over 25 million dollars in infrastructure. All of these projects will utilize the new
recycled pipe standards.
For pictures of all Governor's Award winners, please visit https://www.in.gov/idem/6930.htm.
The
Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence is an annual program to
recognize Indiana’s leaders who have identified and implemented innovative
environmental practices into their programs and facilities. The awards program
is open to all Indiana facilities, state and local units of government,
individuals, and technical assistance organizations that implement exemplary
environmental projects with measurable results.
For
more information about the Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence,
visit www.idem.IN.gov/prevention/2358.htm. IDEM will soon be making
nomination forms available for the 2019 Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence.
Organizations, businesses and individuals will have until April 18, 2019 to
submit nominations for projects completed in 2017 and 2018.
About IDEM
IDEM
(www.idem.IN.gov)
implements federal and state regulations regarding the environment. Through
compliance assistance, incentive programs and educational outreach, the agency
encourages and aids businesses and citizens in protecting Hoosiers and our
environment.
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Media Contact:
Barry Sneed
Public Information Officer
317-232-8596
media@idem.IN.gov
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