DEC seeks applications for 2014 Environmental Excellence Awards program

ALBANY — The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) commissioner announced that the agency is now accepting applications for the 2014 Environmental Excellence Awards program.

The awards program, in its 11th year, “recognizes and gives visibility to outstanding, innovative and sustainable projects or programs” that achieve significant environmental benefits for New York state,” according to a DEC news release.

“Year after year, we see phenomenal, environmentally-beneficial innovations coming from entities and individuals from around the state,” DEC Commissioner Joe Martens said in the release. “I encourage others to submit applications this year to showcase advances in a green technology and other ways to improve and protect the environment.”

Eligible applicants for the 2014 Environmental Excellence Awards program include:

• Businesses from the manufacturing, power generation, retail, agri-business, and hospitality industries
• Nonprofit organizations
• Education, health care, and recreational facilities
• Individuals and local, state, federal or Indian Nation government agencies working to improve and protect New York’s environmental resources and contribute to a viable economy

Over the past decade, previous award winners have helped New York reduce more than 25,000 tons of CO₂ and other greenhouse-gas emissions, the DEC said. The winners have managed to eliminate more than 2 million pounds of hazardous wastes, and reduce the use of heating oil or other petroleum products by at least 1 million gallons. More than 37 million kilowatt hours of electricity and 35 million gallons of water consumption have been saved, the DEC contended.

The winners in 2013 included Onondaga County’s Save the Rain Program. Its projects are capturing about 6.2 million gallons of stormwater annually, resulting in an energy savings of about 12,450 kilowatt hours each year, the DEC said.

This year, the agency said it is especially interested in the following projects:

• Green-infrastructure projects
• Initiatives to cut greenhouse-gas emissions
• Cutting-edge pollution-prevention technologies
• Initiatives to “green” businesses, farms, schools, recreational, health care, and hospitality facilities
• Innovative wind, solar, and biomass projects
• Creative natural resource/habitat protection or restoration efforts
• Energy-efficiency improvements
• Innovative education and training programs
• Waste reduction and recycling efforts
• Manufacturing-process improvements
• Creative approaches to urban forestry or farming
• Programs advancing efforts to grow foods locally

The last day to postmark the applications for the 2014 is Friday, May 9. Award winners will be honored at an awards ceremony held in early winter 2014, and will have an opportunity to present and display information about their award-winning projects or programs, the DEC said.

Those interested in participating in the awards program can obtain more detailed information here.

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