COLUMBUS - There aren't any paper pileups these days at Nebraska Public Power District's general office in Columbus.
Boxes located next to copy machines or beside workers' desks are a common sight in the general office as collection points for recycling paper. Saving and reusing the paper is one way of leveling the mountain of material generated at the office.
Workers don't throw away their awareness of recycling when they leave their desks. There also are recycling receptacles in the office's break rooms for the collection of aluminum soda cans.
There is a mindset among NPPD employees and a corporate goal to be responsible environmental stewards, said Larry Linder of the utility's Corporate Environmental Department.
Reducing the general office's waste stream - computer and paper products are the two largest contributors - is a win-win situation for the district and the community, said Keith Karel of the environmental department. The district trims its waste disposal costs and helps the city extend the life of the landfill, he said.
The district's general office recycles 19,000 pounds of paper annually, only a fraction of the utility's statewide total of 84 tons of office paper.
Linder and Karel were among those attending Wednesday's meeting at NPPD to report on the results of a business recycling needs assessment survey in Columbus and Grand Island. The survey was conducted by WasteCap Nebraska and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Bureau of Business Research.
The survey polled businesses in the communities to evaluate business attitudes toward recycling, current recycling efforts and the level of need and interest in recycling training and services.
Columbus businesses registered a 55 percent response rate, with more than 200 surveys returned for analysis by researchers. Grand Island businesses posted a 35 percent response rate.
“Columbus' response was wonderful, providing reliable study results that demonstrated a significant interest in recycling,'' said Carrie Hakenhamp, executive director of WasteCap Nebraska. The nonprofit organization founded in Lincoln offers technical assistance and recycling services to businesses.
More than half of the city's large companies rated recycling and waste reduction as important, while just 25 percent of the small businesses ranked the effort as important, according to the survey.
Organizations with more than 100 employees were more likely to develop recycling programs on a broader range of materials than were their smaller counterparts, Hakenhamp said. Large organizations also were more willing to purchase equipment or pay for recycling services.
The survey responses revealed that two of the primary items most Columbus businesses need more waste reduction and recycling information about are electronics equipment (computers, monitors, printers) and fluorescent bulbs.
“We've done 12 electronics collections in the state since 2002,'' Hakenhamp said. In the survey Columbus businesses estimated that 3,100 computers, 2,100 monitors and 700 printer/fax machines are disposed of annually in the community, she said.
Primarily smaller businesses, but also large businesses, need to be educated and understand the state and federal rules regarding disposal of these and other materials, Hakenhamp said.
The survey results identified three actions WasteCap could take to increase recycling: provide information and recycling materials education workshops; increase access and visibility of recycling drop-off centers; and boost information on the costs/benefits of recycling materials.
WasteCap is developing a local working group of businesses to study and promote expanded recycling programs in the community.
NPPD's recycling efforts aren't confined to paper and aluminum cans at its Columbus headquarters. The district's other offices, power plants and utility operations participate on a statewide basis.
In 2004, the district recycled 484 tons of steel, 93 tons of copper, 52 tons of aluminum, eight tons of batteries, five tons of iron, two tons of cardboard and 300 pounds of brass. The district also recycled 147,117 gallons of oil (used, mineral and motor) and marketed 79,030 tons of flyash for cement replacement of soil stabilization.
The savings show up on the utility's bottom line.
NPPD also has been successful with its investment recovery (recovering spent dollars from surplus, obsolete or outdated and overstocked inventory). In 2003, NPPD realized a return of $700,000; in 2004, the utility realized a return of nearly $850,000.
By maximizing recycling materials, NPPD's facilities are permitted to operate under less stringent government regulations, a hidden savings that can be difficult to quantify but is understood by the district's leadership and rank-and-file workers, Linder said.
Curtailing the volume of waste, Karel said, means the district's facilities can qualify for fewer inspections, reduced recordkeeping on storage of materials and less overall paperwork. “Everybody wins,'' Karel said. |
Source: columbustelegram.com |
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