The Veolia Hazardous Waste, North America team in Wisconsin was among 21 organizations to receive the Recycling Excellence Award from the state Department of Natural Resources. The Veolia team was recognized for rolling out a pioneering program for recycling propane tanks, helping households and businesses across the state become more environmentally sustainable.
The Veolia facility in Menomonee Falls stores and processes hazardous waste to make the materials safe for proper disposal at an approved land disposal facility. The team demonstrated industry leadership in the development of a gas cylinder recycling unit, designed for small and large cylinders alike including difficult-to-manage one-pound camp stove cylinders and larger.
Working with gas industry experts, Veolia developed a cost-effective gas recovery system that enables 100% recovery and recycling of end-of-life propane cylinders. The remaining propane is repurposed and recovered, while the empty metal containers are crushed and sent off-site for reconditioning or recycling.
鈥淭his sustainable solution serves both households and businesses, reducing environmental impact while creating operational efficiencies,鈥� the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said in an announcement.
鈥淚鈥檓 extremely proud of everyone on the Menomonee Falls team for showing how Veolia leads the way in bringing sustainable solutions to our customers and communities,鈥� said Paul Bittner, Menomonee Falls Facility Manager. Bittner noted the project鈥檚 success was due in large part to Brent Dierks, Reactives Program Manager for the Central Branch, who guided it forward throughout the process.
鈥淥utstanding work by Brent,鈥� added Bittner. 鈥淗e was responsible for everything from initiating the project to designing the equipment, developing the SOP and commencing recycling operations. His vision for this project was guided by the principles of Veolia鈥檚 mission of ecological transformation.鈥�