News Releases from Region 03
EPA Recognizes Peace Dining Corporation of Philadelphia with Honorable Mention in WasteWise Large Business Category
PHILADELPHIA (May 7, 2020) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the 2019 winners of the National WasteWise Awards this month. Peace Dining Corporation of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, received an honorable mention in the Large Business Category.
In 2018, EPA’s WasteWise partners, including recent award winners, collectively reported preventing and diverting more than 1.9 million tons of municipal solid waste that would otherwise be disposed in landfills or incinerated, saving close to 100 million dollars in landfill tipping fees.
Peace Dining Corporation (PDC) is committed to achieving complete corporate sustainability, including resource conservation and waste management. The corporation began implementing its Environmental Management System (EMS) in 2015 to improve its environmental performance. PDC received ISO 14001 EMS certification in 2016 for identifying, measuring and managing its environmental impacts through the continuous improvement process.
In 2018, the corporation achieved a 73 percent waste diversion rate. It diverted 105 tons of waste from landfills by preventing 20 tons of corrugated cardboard and wood pallets from being generated in the first place and recycling 85 tons of mixed recyclables and mixed organics. The company also implemented bio-digester technology at its central kitchen to manage its organic waste and no longer sends any organic waste from its central kitchen to landfill. With these actions, PDC saves approximately $8,000 in hauler fees annually.
“As we continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, it is fitting to highlight these WasteWise partners for their dedication to waste reduction, environmental stewardship and sustainable materials management,” said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “These efforts not only provide environmental and cost savings benefits, but they also increase the efficiency of these businesses and organizations, positioning them for greater success.”
EPA’s WasteWise program encourages organizations and businesses to achieve sustainability in their practices and reduces select industrial wastes. Participants in the program work to prevent and divert waste that would otherwise be disposed of in landfills or incinerated.
“WasteWise winners demonstrate outstanding leadership in sustainability, waste reduction, diversion and environmental stewardship,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Cosmo Servidio. “Sustainability-focused organizations like the Peace Dining Corporation increase awareness and knowledge about reducing waste and provide examples and inspiration for other organizations to take responsible actions toward a sustainable future.”
Every year, EPA recognizes WasteWise partners in various categories who report the best overall improvement in waste prevention and recycling activities, when compared to the previous year. The complete list of national award winners for work conducted in 2019 are:
The 2019 National Award Winners:
College/University Category
Partner of the Year: Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, Michigan
Local Government Category
Partner of the Year: City of Chesapeake Garage, Chesapeake, Virginia
Honorable Mention: Sand Creek Station Golf Course, Newton, Kansas
Tribal Government Category
Partner of the Year: Chumash Casino Resort, Santa Ynez, California
Non-profit Organization Category
Partner of the Year: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Massachusetts
Small Business Category
Partner of the Year: Ravitz Family Markets, Price Rite Supermarkets, Inc., Camden, New Jersey
Honorable Mention: Home Market Foods, Norwood, Massachusetts
Large Business Category
Partner of the Year: Rooms to Go, Seffner, Florida
Honorable Mention: Peace Dining Corporation, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Very Large Business Category
Partner of the Year: CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington
Honorable Mention: L Brands, Inc., Columbus, Ohio
More information about each winner’s efforts and results, is available at: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/smm/wastewise#AwardsandAwardWinners
Background
The WasteWise program is part of EPA’s Sustainable Materials Management efforts that promote the use and reuse of materials more productively over their entire life cycles. All U.S. businesses, governments, academic institutions and non-profit organizations can join WasteWise as a partner, an endorser or both. Partners demonstrate how they reduce waste, practice environmental stewardship and incorporate sustainable materials management into their waste management practices. Endorsers promote enrollment in WasteWise as part of a comprehensive approach to help their stakeholders realize the economic benefits to reducing waste. For more information, visit: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/smm/wastewise
Learn more about the 2019 WasteWise National Award winners and the 2019 Regional Award winners
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EPA Mid-Atlantic Region’s mission is to protect human health and the environment for Delaware, District of Columbia Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and seven federally recognized tribes. Meeting the diverse environmental challenges of a Region with the nation’s largest estuary, rural expanses and major cities and agricultural centers, EPA Mid-Atlantic’s successes are shouldered by the dedication and talents of its employees and the strong relationships it has fostered with partners in its states and communities. For more information, visit: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/sites/static/files/2020-02/documents/r3_digital-final-mid-atlantic-yir-report-2019.pdf
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