On Tuesday the 23 organizations involved in 19 environmental projects from across the state were honored with the 2014 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence.
The Pennsylvania Environmental Council hosted a dinner to recognize the award winners and featured keynote speaker Chris Abruzzo, Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection and opening remarks by Ellen Ferretti, Secretary of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Secretary Ferretti said DCNR’s employees are excited about implementing Gov. Corbett’s Enhanced Penn Woods initiative to repair and upgrade State Parks and Forests. She also congratulated PEC on its 44th birthday and recalled what a radical thing it was in 1970 to recycle.
Click Here to watch Ferretti’s remarks.
“Each year, it’s inspiring to learn about the innovative, environmentally friendly projects from across the state,” said DEP Secretary Chris Abruzzo. “This year’s award recipients are protecting Pennsylvania’s environment with creativity and ingenuity.”
Secretary Abruzzo provided an update on activities in DEP, including the Permit Review Guarantee (96 percent on time), transparency at the agency (a record number of hearings and webinars) and the best kept secret at the agency-- the dramatic reduction of greenhouse gas emissions as a result of increased natural gas use (2020 emissions will be lower than 2000 emissions).
“You have the commitment of this Governor and this DEP Secretary, that every day we will work extraordinarily hard to uphold our mission to protect our land, water and air resources,” Abruzzo said.
Click Here to watch Abruzzo’s remarks.
Gov. Corbett recognized the award winners by saying, “The recipients of this year’s award represent a few of the many dedicated Pennsylvanians who have committed their businesses, schools and other organizations to be good stewards of the environment. Their efforts are key to ensure that Pennsylvania’s air, land and water are clean for generations to come.”
Any Pennsylvania business, school, government agency, trade organization, non-profit organization or agribusiness that has completed projects to promote environmental stewardship and economic development was eligible to apply for the award. The winners were selected by the Department of Environmental Protection.
The winning projects include tailgate recycling, abandoned mine drainage (AMD) abatement, rain gardens and the use of alternative energy, among others.
The list of award winners is available online.
