Emterra Environmental honored for Business Leadership in Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce 2016 business awards

Emterra Environmental is pleased and honored to have been acknowledged by the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce in the category of Business Leadership at their recent business awards gala event. It was noted by The Chamber that Emterra Environmental was being recognized for its leadership and inspiration in making a contribution to the community and the environment, and for serving as a role model for future generations of business leaders.

“We believe it is our corporate and social responsibility to be environmentally conscious and sustainable,” said Ed Walsh, VP of Operations for BC during his acceptance speech at the awards gala. “Some of our proudest accomplishments in the Capital Region are the construction of our compressed natural gas fuelling facility that is now open and available to any fleet and switching most of our fleet over from diesel to compressed natural gas.”

Emterra caught the attention of the awards judges for its approach to helping municipal and commercial clients implement waste diversion and recycling solutions that aim to achieve Zero Waste goals. As a Canadian leader in waste management and recycling with locations in Victoria, throughout the province of B.C., across Canada and in Michigan, USA, Emterra is adept at applying innovative ideas and best-in-class technology to maximize the diversion of recyclables and organics by processing and marketing these materials into secondary resource materials that can be re-manufactured into new products.

Since the family-owned and operated business began in 1976, Emterra has pursued its mission to operate an environmentally-sustainable company and still grow and prosper. In taking steps to mitigate the environmental impact of its operations and demonstrate its commitment to environmental stewardship, Emterra has invested millions of dollars in energy efficient recyclables processing equipment, built a network of public compressed natural gas (CNG) fuelling stations, and expanded its fleet of cleaner running CNG powered trucks across Canada

Across Canada, 35 per cent of its fleet of 550 trucks operate on CNG and 16 of these green vehicles are based in Victoria, BC, providing recycling collection services to residents and businesses across the Capital Regional District and beyond. Compared to traditional diesel trucks, CNG trucks reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 20 per cent and operate at 90 per cent reduced engine sound, significantly lowering noise pollution and contributing to cleaner, more livable communities.

In addition, by opening a public network of four CNG fuelling stations across Canada, one of which is in Victoria, Emterra enables other fleet owners to make the switch to the greener, cleaner-burning fuel without investing in costly fuelling infrastructure.

“Investing in the communities we live and serve, being environmentally responsible and energy-efficient are the foundations of our organization,” says Emterra’s founder and CEO, Emmie Leung. “We are proud of our mission and that it has given us opportunities to support social sustainability through our employment practices and Community Care ™ Program.” 

Emterra is recognized as an inclusive employer by Avia Employment Services, a government-funded WorkBC initiative that creates employment opportunities for people who may experience difficulties in obtaining and retaining employment, such as immigrants, youth, aboriginal people, persons with disabilities, survivors of violence and abuse and persons with multiple barriers to employment. In addition, Emterra supports employee diversity, noting that 30 per cent of its employees are female and 37 per cent are self-identified as visible minorities. At the executive level, 35 per cent are female and 24 per cent are visible minorities. This is compared to 17.1 per cent and two per cent of females and visible minorities, respectively, who hold director positions on boards within companies listed in the Financial Post, FP500 list.

In the past year, Emterra’s contributions to a more sustainable future in B.C. has earned it the following distinctions:  

• Among Canada’s Greenest Employers for 2016

• The Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce Business Leadership distinction

• Vancouver Island Synergy Sustainability Institute’s 2015 EcoStar Award, Climate Action category; and

• Surrey Board of Trade’s 2015 Environment and Business Achievement Award, Large Business category.