DALLAS, Texas, March 21, 2008 (ENS) – After eliminating 4,000 pounds of harmful chemicals, the management of Dallas Love Field airport is pledging to reduce 1,000 additional pounds as part of a national program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The airport plans to reduce 1,000 pounds of polychlorinated biphenyls, PCBs, as part of the National Partnership for Environmental Priorities, NPEP, program.

In addition, it is pledging to eliminate 50 pounds of mercury by replacing light bulbs, thermometers, thermostats and other equipment under the NPEP Mercury Challenge campaign.

“More and more top facilities are finding smart, simple ways to conduct business and care for the environment at the same time,” said EPA Regional Administrator Richard Greene. “It is even more inspiring when members of industry not only stick with their commitments to the environment, but expand on them, as Dallas Love Field has done.”

The management of Love Field is
reducing harmful chemicals in
the airport building.
(Photo credit unknown)

The airport will replace fluorescent light ballasts and instruments containing mercury with modern equipment that is free of the harmful chemical. It will also recycle light bulbs that contain mercury.

“Our efforts at Love Field are an extension of citywide policies pertaining to environmental responsibility, which are implemented through our Environmental Management System,” said Director of Aviation Daniel Weber.

“Our success with removing harmful chemicals from the system follows our earlier program to reduce air emissions, in conjunction with our tenant airlines,” Weber said. “Our staff will continue to work at reducing all Dallas Airport System facilities’ impacts on the environment.”

The National Partnership for Environmental Priorities promotes the voluntary reduction of 31 priority chemicals. Through work with the EPA, both public and private organizations identify activities that will reduce the use of these chemicals, preventing their ability to accumulate in the environment and cause harm to humans and the ecosystem.

The Mercury Challenge promotes the voluntary, systematic elimination of equipment continaing mercury, a potent neurotoxin that can affect the brain, spinal cord, kidneys and liver.

More than 150 organizations nationwide have joined the NPEP program, which has set a goal of reducing the use or release of four million pounds of priority chemicals by 2011.

Dallas Love Field is one of only four airports nationwide to join the NPEP program and is the first to add more goals to its original commitment.

The airport covers 1,300 acres and has three runways. Love Field was the primary airport for Dallas until 1974, when Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport opened. Love Field is now Dallas’ secondary airport and serves as a major focus city for Southwest Airlines. Continental Express and American Eagle also offer service from Love Field.

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TRENTON, New Jersey, January 21, 2008 (ENS) – A new initiative designed to motivate New Jersey businesses to do more than the minimum required by environmental laws and regulations was unveiled Friday by Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Jackson.

The goal is to encourage all businesses to evaluate their current facility operations and integrate environmental stewardship initiatives into their operations.

The reward is public recognition for companies that go above and beyond the call of duty.

“The environmental cop always stands ready to catch people when they do something wrong,” Commissioner Jackson said. “But think of the potential rewards from catching someone when they do something right.”

The new Environmental Stewardship Program will offer public acknowledgment to businesses that go beyond minimum environmental requirements.

Achievements will be noted by DEP inspectors during the routine course of their work, evaluated by DEP management, and posted on the DEP’s website.

“This is a sensible and long overdue approach to environmental protection that meshes corporate responsibility with public transparency,” Jackson said. “I strongly believe that such stewardship practices can reduce a company’s costs, foster goodwill within their communities, and result in a cleaner environment for everyone.”

Inspectors will ask officials at businesses to answer a voluntary questionnaire. The companies will be asked, among other things, whether they have broadly adopted stewardship activities, whether they have a comprehensive written environmental policy, whether they operate under an Environmental Management System designed to reduce environmental impacts, and whether they publish an annual environmental report.

The companies also will be asked whether they have documented their greenhouse gas emissions, whether they employ environmentally friendly purchasing policies, whether they operate certified green buildings, and whether they have employee trip reduction programs.

A site will be given credit for any activities completed within the previous 12 months of the survey that qualify as environmental stewardship activities and result in a “significant” benefit to the environment.

The inspectors may review documents, processes and operating procedures to verify stewardship activities.

Even companies that have outstanding compliance issues can qualify for recognition under the new Environmental Stewardship Program.

“Most non-compliance will not prevent the DEP from recognizing stewardship efforts,” the agency says in its statement announcing the new recognition program. “It is understood that environmental regulation can be complex and extensive. Often well meaning and responsible parties can make mistakes.”

“The concept of an environmental cop on the beat has always been strong in New Jersey,” Jackson said. “What is also strong is the spirit of innovation at the DEP. We are leading the country again, this time by defining and measuring the incredible amount of environmental good that exists in our state.”

The DEP intends to share both positives and negatives with the public and “reserves the right to exclude habitually or egregiously non-complying sites.”

For more information, go to: www.nj.gov/dep/enforcement/stewardship [www.nj.gov]

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