Clean Utah Membership Expands

La-Z-Boy Facility Manager Norm Davis
gives a presentation at a DEQ Awards Luncheon.

Firestone Building Products significantly reduced the chemicals used in its manufacturing process by over 1 million pounds last year while La-Z-Boy in Tremonton recycled over 85 percent of its waste.

These and other successes were highlighted at a November luncheon to honor the Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) Clean Utah members. Consider the following:

La-Z-Boy in Tremonton also has reduced the amount of waste being sent to the landfill by 52 percent and saved 12 percent over what it spent last year.
Autoliv’s Ogden Technical Center has xeriscaped a section of its front lawns, saving water and showing employees how the same thing could be done at their homes.
UTA replaced incandescent lamps with fluorescent lamps at all its TRAX lots, saving 76,596 watts over last year’s numbers.
Circle Four Farms in Milford is installing a windmill farm on a portion of its excess property.

Four new members have been accepted under the Clean Utah program – a voluntary initiative that rewards companies for reducing or preventing pollution. Circle Four Farms and UTA were accepted into the Partner Level. Information on Partner Level accomplishments is posted at: http://www.deq.utah.gov/cleanutah/partners.htm

Two new companies joined the seven other Entry Level Members:

USANA Health Sciences, a leading manufacturer of nutritional supplements, in West Valley received a silver certificate with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System for designing an energy-efficient building in 2007.

Employees are rewarded for driving low-emission vehicles and carpooling. The xeriscaped lawn saves about 750,000 gallons of water a year. USANA’s purchase of 750 blocks of wind energy a month reduces 800 tons of carbon dioxide emissions in the air, the equivalent of not driving 1.9 million miles or planting 176,775 trees a year.

“We want to reduce the environmental impact of our company and our business to the fullest extent possible because it’s the right thing to do and because, in the long-run, it will be good for our business,” Timothy Wood, the company’s executive vice president, wrote in his application for Clean Utah.

Tear-a-Part, an auto recycling company in Salt Lake City has been received several awards for its environmental initiatives. The company joined Clean Utah to further its goal of minimizing its environmental impact.

“We believe that a successful business must show respect and concern for the community of which it is a part.” explained environmental specialist Kristen Brinkerhoff in her company’s application. “Through the implementation of a comprehensive environmental management system we expect to identify areas for improvement while instilling in our employees a sense of responsibility and environmental conscientiousness.

“These companies and entities are committed to protecting the environment,” said Rick Sprott, executive director of DEQ. “We applaud them for their good work and encourage other companies to apply for the Clean Utah program.”

The program, designed by a stakeholder group in collaboration with DEQ and consultation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has seen a steady increase in participation since the program was officially launched in September 2004. Today there are 15 members representing 34 facilities.

The program is designed as a three-tiered system. At “Entry Level,” businesses are committed to develop an Environmental Management System or EMS that provides a thorough review of its operations. At “Partner Level,” the company is committed to completing projects aimed at improving their environmental performance. Companies then can advance to the “Leader Level,” where even more projects are implemented. DEQ rewards companies for participation by publicly recognizing them for their efforts and potentially fast-tracking their permit applications.

Renette Anderson, who provides business assistance for DEQ, said the participation is growing because agencies are willing to go a step beyond the basic requirements of meeting local, state and federal environmental requirements. “More businesses are becoming aware of the economic and environmental advantages in taking a look at what can be done to improve efficiencies,” she said.

More information and an application is available at www.deq.utah.gov/cleanutah/