Emterra Group Companies Awarded RCO Platinum and Silver Honours for Innovative Waste Minimization Programs

Emterra Group Companies Awarded RCO Platinum and Silver Honours for Innovative Waste Minimization Programs

October 31, 2013

TORONTO (October 31, 2013) – Emterra Group, a Canadian leader in waste and recycling solutions has been honoured with two prestigious Recycling Council of Ontario (RCO) awards recognizing innovative programs that achieve outstanding waste diversion and minimization objectives.

Canadian Liquids Processors Limited (CLP) of Hamilton, Ontario, an Emterra family company, won the highest waste minimization honour – a platinum – in the Sustainable Product or Services category for its windshield washer fluid, Transformations

In addition, Emterra Environmental, in partnership with the Region of Niagara, won a silver in the Municipal Special Program category for its on-going “Make Your Contribution at the Curb!” challenge to encourage Niagara Region residents to recycle more containers and paper in their Blue and Grey boxes while benefiting cancer care in the region.

CLP’s Transformations is a closed-loop, environmentally-superior end-product made from waste liquids such as out-dated sugar and alcohol-based consumer beverages. CLP converts the waste beverages and other liquids generated by the industrial and commercial sectors into an industrial grade ethanol. The ethanol is then used to manufacture a non-toxic, cradle-to-cradle windshield washer fluid for fleets that offers the same performance as the standard toxic, methanol-based fluid. Transformations is available to all companies but is particularly valuable to the corporate sustainability goals of those that use CLP’s waste processing services.   

“We are very proud of the environmental features of our Transformations windshield washer fluid. It is truly a 100% closed-loop product that achieves zero waste,” said CLP General Manager Erica Seibert. “To have this product and our enterprise recognized by our peers with a RCO platinum award is indeed an honour for our entire company.”

The “Make Your Contribution at the Curb!” challenge, now in the third of seven years, demonstrates continuous improvement in helping to motivate Niagara Region residents to recycle more containers and papers through their curbside recycling program.

Emterra Environmental in Niagara Region developed the challenge as a means of making a significant contribution to the health and well-being of the Niagara community while promoting environmental goals through waste diversion. Emterra pledged to donate up to a half a million dollars over seven years to the Niagara Walker Family Cancer Centre. However, Emterra wanted to add value to the financial gift so it proposed to the Region that the size of the donation each year be driven by the amount residents recycle. For every tonne of Blue and Grey Box recyclables collected and processed over the seven years of their contract, Emterra contributes $1 to the cancer centre fund. So far, Emterra has donated nearly $76,000.

After the successful launch of the “Make Your Contribution at the Curb! challenge in 2012, Emterra added an innovative approach in 2013. Along with collecting recyclables from the residential sector, Emterra is now inviting the industrial, commercial and institutional (ICI) sector to participate by signing up for the challenge.

“The “Make Your Contribution” challenge is a success because of the cooperative efforts of many partners including Bell Media and Sun Media but most particularly the Region of Niagara.  Emterra is delighted that our unique approach to giving back to the community has received this accolade,” said Paulina Leung, Emterra’s vice president of corporate strategy and business development.

On top of these two RCO Waste Minimization Awards, Emterra Environmental in Winnipeg was honoured last week as the 2013 Manitoba Filipino Business Association’s Employer of the Year award.  A significant percentage of Emterra’s workforce in Winnipeg comes from the Filipino community.

Contact:

Paulina Leung | Emterra Environmental  | P: 905.336.9084, # 130|  C: 416.939.7916  | E: paulina.leung@emterra.ca