By Kris Leonhardt
Editor
GREEN BAY – Two Green Bay businesses were recipients of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) 2022 Wisconsin Recycling Excellence Awards.
The winners were announced on Nov. 15 — America Recycles Day — and are ranked at the top of a list of nonprofits, schools and local governments who demonstrate the state’s “strong commitment to waste reduction and recycling through their projects and initiatives, overall program, innovation or special events,” according to the DNR.
“The award recipients shared several reasons why waste reduction and diversion are important to them, including saving landfill space and resources, reducing pollution and promoting sustainability. But the resounding motivation was strengthening their community. Many of the winners conduct outreach, work closely with partners and provide valuable services for residents and local businesses.”
Green Bay Packaging and Greener Bay Compost were both recipients in the “Overall” category.
Green Bay Packaging Corporate Environmental Engineer Stacy Brault said that recycling is a part of what the company does to benefit the environment.
“Waste reduction and landfill diversion for Green Bay Packaging is a key measure of end-value performance, materiality efficiencies and process optimization. Recycling and resource-saving actions benefit the environment and align with our company commitment to producing sustainable paper packaging,” Brault stated.
In 2021, the company began utilizing a new mill which took their recycling capabilities to a new level.
“The new operation is capable of accepting more types of recyclable paper and expanding market opportunities. The facility has achieved 98% landfill diversion through technology and investment and has reduced production waste by 30%,” a DNR release explained.
Greener Bay Compost began operations in August of 2021 and is a small family-run business.
Since its launch, residential compost pick-up service has exploded — growing from 16 subscribers to 120.
“The service also works with small businesses. Waste such as fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and eggshells are collected in five-gallon buckets and paper bags. At their compost site, these materials are converted into a nutrient-rich soil amendment, which they then reward to their subscribers, donate to worthy organizations and sell to the general public,” the DNR release added.
Greener Bay Compost Founder amd CEO Cory Groshek also views waste as a resource.
“Waste reduction and diversion is important to us because we believe that food waste is not garbage. It is a valuable resource, full of nutrients, which should be put back into the earth, not into a landfill,” he said.
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