WINNERS 2006
GOVERNORS’
AWARD for
POLLUTION PREVENTION
and SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES
Dentistry Northwest,
in Port Hadlock, was started by Dr. John
Barrett in 1979. The practice has eliminated or reduced the use of heavy metals
and toxic chemicals by finding alternatives, upgrading equipment, and
redesigning their business practices.
They use a resin-based compound for fillings and use chairside traps and amalgam
separators to keep mercury-containing amalgam from old fillings out of the
wastewater. They changed to a digital X-ray machine and eliminated that source
of silver and lead-laden waste. This change and an upgrade to the vacuum pump
system dropped water use by approximately 5,000 gallons per month. |
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Dr. John Barrett, Rebecca Krajewski, Carol
Eldridge, Kristina Allen, Christine Allen, Governor's Advisor on State
Sustainability Kathleen Drew. |
Frito-Lay, Inc.,
Vancouver, produces and distributes “salty snacks” throughout
the Pacific Northwest. The company committed itself to good environmental
practices in the early 1990s, with an active Green Team drawn from all levels of
the facility and a closely audited environmental management system. All
employees receive environmental training to raise awareness of these important
issues.
All wastes and by-products are tracked quarterly. They have reduced the amount
of waste going to the landfill by 172 tons per year, and reduced disposal costs
by $17,000. Water use is down by 50,000,000 gallons and costs have been reduced
by $50,000 per year. Electrical and natural gas use are both down, and recycling
is up. |
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Dianne Wright, Mike Bach, Doug Williamson, Sharon
Kulish-Bayles, Katy Paradee, Bella Vincent, Tamra Gammon, Robert ter
Kuile, Governor's Advisor on State Sustainability Kathleen Drew. |
Korry Electronics,
in Seattle, designs and manufactures elements for military
and commercial aircraft, military ships and track vehicles. Korry practices lean
manufacturing, scrutinizing all phases of its operations to find and eliminate
waste.
Employees and suppliers worked together on a system to reduce material wasted
because it passed its use date. Korry Electronics products do not contain
brominated flame-retardants, a class of persistent, bioaccumulative toxics. New
equipment and processes dropped paint booth filter waste by more than half,
reduced water bills by an average of $3,300 per month and could reduce water
consumption by 2.9 million gallons per year. |
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Erin Kittleman, John Fauska, Echo Summers, Gary
Dytrt, Rick Ormandy, Governor's Advisor on State Sustainability Kathleen
Drew. |
Panasonic Shikoku Electronics Corporation of America - Consumer Electronics,
in
Vancouver, manufactures combination televisions and projection televisions.
Since 2005, the company has been making these products with less toxic
alternatives. All parts and supplies coming into the facility must meet rigorous
chemical standards and can only contain materials on an approved chemical list.
This Panasonic company policy means the Vancouver facility will no longer use
two pounds of lead solder, 42,000 pounds of hexavalent chromium, and 775,440
pounds of problem flame retardants each year. The facility has an overall
recycling rate of 94 percent and provided almost 2,000 tons of recyclables in
2005. |
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Dale Swanson, Deb Weimer, Kristen Abe, Rick Davis,
Governor's Advisor on State Sustainability Kathleen Drew. |
The Seattle Tilth Association
has been teaching people about organic gardening
and building the region's capacity for sustainability for 28 years. Their more
than 300 programs serve more than 15,000 King County residents each year. They
created their three demonstration gardens from barren concrete expanses.
Seattle Tilth minimizes water use at the gardens by conservation, soaker hoses,
drip irrigation, mulches and row covers. Instructors cut down on gas use by
driving to local class sites rather than having students from throughout the
region drive to the headquarters. The Association works with other groups to
promote donating fresh fruit and vegetables to food banks. |
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Karen Luetjen, Neal Thayer, Craig Skipton,
Governor's Advisor on State Sustainability Kathleen Drew. |
Sleeping Lady Mountain Retreat,
near Leavenworth, accommodates up to 165 guests
for meals and lodging and offers 10,000 square feet of meeting space. It won the
Governor's Award in 2001, for the environmental stewardship shown in its design,
construction and operation. The judges gave it the Continuing Excellence award
for maintaining, and extending, those high standards for the past five years.
Sleeping Lady reduced electricity use by installing ground source heat pumps to
heat water for the laundry and to heat and cool most of the guest rooms. They
designed and built the new music center buildings according to the standards of
the initial building. The pool's new sanitation system uses an electrolytic
process to cycle salt into chlorine and back, reusing the same material. They
use recycled building materials whenever possible, such as the tabletops and bar
counter made from plate glass.
|
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| L to R: Ecology
Director Jay Manning, Harriet Bullet, Paula Helsel, Governor's Advisor
on State Sustainability Kathleen Drew. |
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Washington State Department of Ecology