The applicants and nominees listed below were recognized by the Governor in 1994 for their efforts to protect and enhance the environmental quality of Vermont by conserving natural resources and preventing pollution before it is generated. Where there are multiple award recipients in a single category, the panel of judges did not make a distinction between first, second, and third place winners. Thus, the award recipients are listed alphabetically.

Business/Industry/Trade/Professional Organizations

Large Businesses:

International Business Machines (IBM Chemical/ Environmental Programs) (Essex Jct., VT) - IBM, with 6,000 employees in Essex Junction, manufactures semiconductor memory and logic components for computers. A second-time award recipient, IBM is recognized in 1994 for its toxics use and hazardous waste reduction efforts in the photolithography process and for its conversion from a perchloroethylene- to a less toxic xylene-based cleaning process for semiconductor modules.

Following through on a commitment made in 1989 to eliminate the use of toxic glycol ethers in their photoresist process, IBM exercised environmental leadership by demanding that internal and external resist suppliers find a "safe solvent" alternative. Using chemical substitution as the primary strategy, the engineering team sought and eventually found a safe substitute. Today, toxic glycol ether has largely been replaced with less toxic propylene glycol methyl ether acetate and the company is targeting the end of this year for complete conversion. More efficient chemical usage in the photolithography process has further reduced resist usage by 400 gallons per year and developer usage by 20,000 gallons per year which translates into a subsequent reduction in the wastewater generated. Chemical use reductions alone generate a cost savings of $600,000 per year. In addition, the dry strip oxidation process technology IBM helped to develop eliminates 83,000 gallons per year of solvent usage and 216 pounds per year of volatile gas emissions. The savings in reprocessed solvent and waste treatment costs is estimated to be $800,000 per year.

The second project involved the replacement of perchloroethylene, a known carcinogen effective at cleaning wire contact relays and semiconductor modules with a xylene-based cleaning process. Since 1990, average chemical usage was reduced from 1,400 gallons of perchloroethylene per day to 35 gallons of xylene per day and emissions were reduced by 1,600 pounds per year to nearly zero. Process costs were reduced by more than $75,000 per year and maintenance time was reduced. The new process has more than doubled the production throughput and is now also being utilized for a wafer cleaning application.

Small Businesses:

Foster Motors (Middlebury, VT) - Foster Motors is a mid-sized auto dealership, located in Middlebury, that employs 53 people. In 1992, Foster Motors instituted a toxics use reduction (TUR) planning program. Prior to planning, Foster Motors generated over 3,900 pounds of hazardous waste annually. In 1994, they should generate no more than 300 pounds of hazardous waste. This 90% reduction has occurred largely due to the use of an aqueous parts washer, anti-freeze recycling, use of a solvent distillation unit, and a rigorous spill prevention program. The dramatic reduction in the generation of hazardous waste means that Foster Motors has already attained conditionally exempt small quantity generator status.

Sugarbush Resort (Warren, VT) - Sugarbush, with 150 full-time employees, is a destination ski resort located in Warren. Beginning in 1991, Sugarbush has aggressively pursued its commitment to responsibly manage solid and hazardous waste. To deal with its solid wastes Sugarbush instituted a Recycling-Plus! program. This program allows staff and visitors to recycle all glass, aluminum, tin, some plastics, newspaper, corrugated cardboard, newspaper, magazines, and all redeemables. In addition, Sugarbush's program incorporates composting toilets at Sugarbush South's mid-mountain facility. These toilets, installed in February of 1992, have saved approximately 1,000,000 gallons of water. In addition, the composting toilets required no environmental disturbance for leach fields or holding tanks. The toilets take human waste and create an organic compost-like end product.

Environmental, Community, and Non-Profit Organizations

Washington Electric Cooperative, Inc. (WEC) - Washington Electric Cooperative, with its administrative offices in East Montpelier, is a rural electric cooperative whose service density of 6.3 customers per mile of line makes it one of the most rural utilities in New England. Despite its small size and low customer density, WEC began a comprehensive and aggressive demand-side management initiative in 1992 and now implements an impressive roster of seven energy conservation programs including: Small Commercial and Residential Energy Improvement Services, Residential Direct Install, New Construction, a Rural Farm program, a Schools program, and the Efficient Appliance program. In 1993, the total energy savings from all seven programs totaled 803 MWh. Energy savings over the life of the measures are estimated to be 8,415 MWh, or enough to provide electricity to serve 141 new homes. The environmental savings from the Coop's energy efficiency measures in 1993 included preventing the emission of nearly half a million pounds of carbon dioxide and over two tons of sulfur dioxide.

The Cooperative, in collaboration with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation, is involved in a pilot project to establish guidelines and programs for environmentally sound vegetation management along utility lines.

In addition, the Cooperative converted its administrative office building from electric to propane space heating and installed energy efficient lighting. The Coop is also a key participant in the Vermont Electric Vehicle Demonstration Project, a partnership effort to test nine electric vehicles under Vermont road and climate conditions. WEC is providing the metering at the 1.75 kilowatt solar power station located on Route 2 in Middlesex, which is connected by modem to a computer at WEC's administrative offices. During the course of the next year, the Cooperative will record and analyze average kW and kWh output to determine the future feasibility of this type of renewable-energy technology. The solar power station is one of the only four projects in the country that includes both renewable solar energy and the powering of electric vehicles.

Institutions (Schools, Hospitals, Municipalities)

Burlington Electric Department (BED) - In its 1988 Strategic Plan the Burlington Electric Department committed to remove all Polychlorinated Biphenyl, or PCB, contaminated and PCB equipment from its distribution system - and committed the necessary resources to ensure that it got done. PCBs have long been recognized as a hazard to health and the environment. Although no statute or regulation required such an action, the Burlington Electric Department decided to remove all PCBs above a 50 PPM concentration. Since 1985, the Burlington Electric Department has removed 200,000 pounds of PCB containing equipment and 140,000 pounds of PCB oil from its system. The equipment was decommissioned for metal recovery while the oil was chemically detoxified at strictly regulated, licensed facilities. Less environmentally harmful mineral oil was used as the substitute for the volumes of PCB oil removed from transformers. All of this was accomplished despite the enormity of the effort and the inconveniences scheduled outages presented to Burlington's citizens and the Department's electrical customers. Although the PCB removal program does not lend itself well to a classic economic efficiency evaluation, the benefits are considered to exceed the more than $1.5 Million the project was projected to cost.

Public Agencies

Vermont Public Transportation Association (VPTA) Rideshare Program (White River Junction, VT) - According to its 1993 Annual Report, the Vermont Public Transportation Association provides several programs designed to promote the use of public transportation and alternatives to the single-occupancy vehicle.

The Vermont Rideshare program, in particular, has allowed many Vermonters to share rides by either car- or vanpooling with other Vermonters. Ridesharing involves two or more people sharing a ride in a car, van, or bus. The mission of the Vermont Rideshare Program is "...to improve the quality of life and economic well being of all participants by promoting mobility and the efficient use of existing transportation resources; to educate participants about alternatives to single occupant vehicles, to encourage them to examine their personal travel options, and to provide coordinated services which assist participants to make informed transportation choices."

In the first ten months of FY93 the Vermont Rideshare Program arranged for over 91,000 rideshare trips and saved over two million miles of travel. In the first half of FY94, compiled information shows that 1,080,735 miles have been saved through ridesharing. That is, more than one million miles of vehicle travel were avoided because of ridesharing. It is estimated that this figure will double to at least two million by the end of FY94.

Avoided vehicle miles traveled can be converted to emissions avoided using an average of the emissions output for cars which vary according to their size and design. In Vermont, like in most other states, registered vehicle stock ranges from very clean and fuel efficient, to those running dirty and consuming many more gallons of gasoline for each mile traveled than more modern, well maintained vehicles. Using this average, it is estimated that the more than one million miles of vehicle travel avoided means that approximately one million pounds of carbon dioxide (the primary greenhouse gas) and 70,000 pounds of other air contaminants such as hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxide were similarly avoided.

VPTA offers its services through member organizations located throughout the state. The Vermont Rideshare Program is coordinated and managed by 12 local rideshare coordinators. It is their combined efforts that continue to make ridesharing in Vermont a viable alternative to the single occupant vehicle. The Vermont Rideshare Program, through its rideshare coordinators, provide Vermonters with carpool matching services, interest-free loans for vanpools, informational pamphlets and brochures, guaranteed rides home for registered ridesharers, and assistance in developing incentives employers can offer to encourage employee participation in ridesharing. The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, working with the Central Vermont Transportation Association was able to secure preferential parking for ridesharers at the state office complex in Waterbury.

Pollution prevention involves reducing or eliminating the generation of pollutants and wastes at the source. By making it easier for Vermonters to leave their cars at home and to carpool, vanpool, or bus to where it is that they want or need to go the program provides Vermont and Vermonters with many benefits. By reducing vehicle miles traveled the program serves to conserve non-renewable energy resources, reduce participant operating costs, secure significant environmental benefits, reduce traffic and congestion, and can, in the long run, help to create a more sustainable transportation system in Vermont.

VTANR Award for Exemplary P2 Planning

About 300 companies that generate hazardous waste in sufficient quantities were required to develop pollution prevention plans in 1992 and in 1993. Fairbanks Scales, which manufactures electronic weighing platforms at their St. Johnsbury plant, and Fellows Corporation, a manufacturer of gear-cutting machines, lathes and cutting tools in North Springfield, Vt., have, in the estimation of Pollution Prevention, Education & Coordination Division staff, developed exemplary plans.

Both companies relied on in-house personnel to develop comprehensive plans that carefully assessed present hazardous waste generating activities, including detailed process flow diagrams showing where manufacturing operations generated wastes. Next, pollution prevention strategies for each wastestream were evaluated for their technical and if necessary, economic feasibility.

Using the planning process, Fellows was able to identify reduction measures for three of its four largest hazardous wastestreams and has established voluntary implementation goals to achieve waste reductions. In general, reduction goals will be met using employee training programs, more aggressive machine maintenance and repairs, and increased use of on-site recycling to maximize machine coolant life. Fellows is also committed to assess the pollution prevention benefits of future equipment, like "dry floor" designs of new machining centers. Fellows continues to work with a paint supplier to develop less toxic coatings that meet customer specifications.

In their plan, Fairbanks Scales identified several measures for reducing paint-related wastes, potentially resulting in a decrease of 5,000 lbs/ year of hazardous waste. Techniques assessed for implementation include conversion of conventional spray guns to high transfer efficiency HVLP guns, downsizing paint canister and hose length to minimize cleanup wastes, and adopting major process changes such as changing from mild steel to stainless steel to eliminate the need for coatings. Ultimately, Fairbanks hopes to eliminate the need for not only all solvent-based paints, but also all plating room operations including chromate conversion and zinc plating through the substitution of non-corrosive materials and the installation of a liquid-free powder coating system when surface coating remains necessary.

For both companies, pollution prevention plans will serve as excellent baseline documents for the ongoing evaluation of new technologies that can reduce and, in some cases, eliminate the use of toxic materials and the generation of hazardous wastes in their manufacturing operations. The plans will also serve as valuable tools for measuring progress in hazardous waste reduction as implementation of pollution prevention measures proceeds.

VTANR Award for Efforts to Practice/Promote P2

Cody Chevrolet - Cody Chevrolet is a mid-sized auto dealership, located in Montpelier. In 1992, the company volunteered for one of the Department's first waste reduction audits. Since that time Cody Chevrolet has reduced its generation of hazardous waste 75% using solvent substitution, anti-freeze and waste oil recycling, and an aggressive spill prevention program. Even more importantly, however, Robert Cody has made himself an eloquent and convincing spokesperson for the merits of integrating pollution prevention activities in vehicle service work.

Working with staff at the Pollution Prevention Division, Cody Chevrolet helped to audit its own operations in order to identify pollution prevention opportunities. The audit was formalized as a case study which Robert Cody subsequently presented at five workshops sponsored by the Pollution Prevention Division in the fall of 1992. More recently, Mr. Cody assisted the Division in its vehicle service assistance initiative by playing a key role in a statewide conference telecast on inter-active television. Robert Cody's generosity, his enthusiasm and his willingness to share personal experience with others has helped to inform and educate staff about pollution prevention at more than 300 vehicle service and repair facilities throughout Vermont.