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Recycling Efforts

Pollution prevention (P2) generally applies to the practice of setting priorities on how wastes are handled.  This is often depicted as the P2 Hierarchy.  From top to bottom, the basic philosophy is to reduce, reuse, and recycle, often referred to as the 3Rs.  The goal of such a philosophy is to minimize the generation and disposal of waste. 

P2 HierarchyNebraska Public Power District (NPPD) strongly supports the P2 philosophy and has incorporated such philosophy into its business practices as demonstrated by the inclusion of waste minimization and recycling within established corporate and individual environmental leadership principles. 

Recycling activities initially started at NPPD’s larger locations, but have cascaded to the smaller facilities and even to the individual level.  Employee initiated or enhanced recycling efforts demonstrate that District employees are concerned with protecting the environment by incorporating waste disposal, recycling and reuse considerations into their daily work.

While efforts to reduce waste make good business sense and almost always have a positive affect on a company’s financial performance, the benefits of recycling are far reaching.  Beside the potential for payback in dollars for market value of recyclable materials, recycling creates employment opportunities, extends the life of landfills, saves energy and resources and reduces taxes.  Recycling, reusing, and reducing waste all support NPPD’s mission to “enhancing the quality of life in Nebraska.”

The following examples recycling efforts in 2004 provide a snapshot of the types of efforts and results that are seen through efforts at NPPD.  In 2004, NPPD recycled 484 tons of steel, 93 tons of copper, 84 tons of office paper, 52 tons of aluminum, and utilized nearly 150,000 gallons of used oil for energy recovery.  As part of on-going efforts to find markets for use of flyash generated from the combustion of coal, NPPD also marketed approximately 79,000 tons of flyash for cement replacement or soil stabilization in 2004.

While these efforts represent the results of larger, more easily documented efforts, it must be emphasized that all efforts, not matter how small, are important.  From collecting office paper and aluminum cans at the smallest office to collecting tons of scrap metal at the largest facilities, all employees are encouraged to keep the WHO,WHAT, WHERE, WHEN and WHY of P2 in mind:

WHO:
   All employees, contractors, and visitors
WHAT:
   Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
WHERE:
   At all work locations and in the field, home, school, etc.
WHEN:
   Always!  When planning work, performing work, and cleaning after work
WHY:
   Because we all have an obligation to preserve and protect our environment
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