| Contact: R3press@epa.gov EPA Names City of Chesapeake Garage WasteWise Local Government Partner of the Year PHILADELPHIA – (May 7, 2020) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the 2019 winners of the National WasteWise Awards this month. The City of Chesapeake Garage, in Chesapeake, Virginia, was recognized as Local Government Partner of the Year. 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. The City of Chesapeake's Central Fleet Management Department is setting an example for practicing environmental stewardship in a city. They carefully track waste oil, antifreeze, used oil/fuel filters, tires, solvents, aerosol cans, scrapped metal, recycled paper and cardboard. In 2018, Chesapeake Garage placed additional emphasis and training on environmental stewardship. These efforts increased participation by the workforce in recycling, resulting in saving 113,800 pounds of paper/cardboard and 106,436 pounds of scrapped metal and saving $9,000 in revenue. "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 reduce 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 Chesapeake Garage 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://www.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://www.epa.gov/smm/wastewise Learn more about the 2019 WasteWise National Award winners and the 2019 Regional Award winners ---------- 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://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2020-02/documents/r3_digital-final-mid-atlantic-yir-report-2019.pdf Follow EPA Region 3 on Twitter at https://twitter.com/eparegion3 and visit our Facebook page, at http://www.facebook.com/EPAregion3/
 
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