Congratulations to the
SWACO 2010 Emerald Winners!

SWACO's Central Ohio Emerald Awards are designed to highlight and honor local individuals, governments, businesses, educators, and organizations that show GREEN Leadership within
               the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio District.

Chairman’s Award
The Chairman’s Award was presented to Mayor Michael B. Coleman for the many environmental initiatives that he has implemented in the City of Columbus. Among those projects; the 1,600 member “Green Spot” marketing program and the Litter Clean-Up finalist, KickButt Columbus!

Environmental Education
In the Emerald category of Environmental Education, the City of Columbus, GreenSpot Program, was selected. GreenSpot is an educational program that engages residents and businesses in the City of Columbus by issuing window decals to identify environmentally friendly locations. Currently, there are over 1,600 certified GreenSpot areas, and the free program is now being offered to anyone in central Ohio.

Innovation
E3: Columbus is the 2010 recipient of The Emerald for Innovation, and is a coordinated federal and local initiative that is designed to offer solutions for improved sustainability. Partnering with American Electric Power; the City of Columbus; TechSolve; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; the Department of Energy, and the Department of Commerce, this pilot program is expected to be replicated across the country saving large amounts of energy, cutting waste and reducing emissions.

Board of Trustees
This year’s highest honor, the Board of Trustees Award, was given to G & J Pepsi-Cola Bottlers of Columbus for the example that they have set for PepsiCo operations nationwide. In the last year, G & J Pepsi has cut waste to landfills by 17%, reduced by 589,000 gallons the wastewater sent to treatment plants, and has installed new routing software that has saved over $1-million in fuel costs.

Leadership
Donatos Pizzeria received the 2010 Emerald Award for Leadership. With a commitment to become “Landfill Free,” Donatos manufacturing and home office reduced total landfill waste by over 99%. That includes the recycling of 342,000 pounds of scrap pizza dough into animal feed.

Young & Green
The “Young & Green” Award was created this year by the SWACO Board of Trustees to honor students ages 12-18. This award was given to Amelia Pierson of Westerville North High School for creating her own school hall passes printed on paper that she makes.

Partnership
The Emerald for Partnership for 2010 is presented to the Columbus Clippers for the development of their eco-friendly baseball stadium, Huntington Park. Working with Rumpke, the Clippers recycled 220 tons of paper, cardboard, plastics and even the grass clippings. The stadium also features many “green-focused” amenities including open air corporate suites with ceiling fans instead of air-conditioned rooms.

Litter Clean-Up
The City of Whitehall and Mayor, John Wolfe, have been recognized with the Litter
Clean-Up Emerald Award. Partnering with the city, over 525 volunteers assisted in picking up litter along Whitehall streets and alleys as well as city parks. Through their efforts, 345 bags of trash were collected during a one day event.

Entrepreneurship
The Emerald winner in the Entrepreneurship category is Daniel Weisenbach, Founder of Weisenbach Recycled Products. Dan’s Columbus Company collects 1 ton-a-month of hard to recycle local glass and processes it into new trophies.