washington business
2012 Environmental
Excellence Award Winners
resource conservation or pollution
prevention
u.s. linen & uniform, richland
uslinen.com
what it did: Installed a ceramic micro-filtration and reverse osmosis
water system
what it does: Treats water to a level that exceeds a city requirement
and dramatically reduces water consumption — a 10.9 million gallon
reduction in 2011.
why it did it: To meet the City of Richland’s effluent discharge
requirement. Although a less expensive alternative would have met the
standard, the company opted to do everything it could to exceed it.
environmental innovator
rec silicon, moses lake
www.recgroup.com
what it’s doing: Changing the way polysilicon, a key
component in the production of solar panels, is manufactured.
how it’s doing it: The company invested 15 years of research
and development and $1.7 billion in new facilities to become the
leading producer of a type of Fluid Bed Reactor polysilicon. FBR
polysilicon is cleaner, faster and less expensive to produce than
polysilicon made using half-century old Siemens technology.
why it’s doing it: To lower the cost of solar power and make
it competitive with conventional energy sources.
quote: “We believe in solar energy. It needs to be part of the
quote: “We’ve cut down our effluent by about 95 percent.”
– Rick Snyder, general manager, U.S. Linen & Uniform
service linen supply, renton
www.servicelinen.com
@servicelinen
what it did: Installed “Rosie,” a 79-foot long, 50,000 pound Milnor CBW
washer with PulseFlow, the first machine of its kind in the Pacific Northwest
why it did it: Faced with the need to update some of its washers, the
company decided to install a “Continuous Batch Washer,” a single machine
that took the place of six washers.
what it does: Reduced water consumption by two-thirds, dramatically
cut back on energy use to heat the water and reduced the number of people
needed to operate the machines. Total annual savings are estimated to
reach up to $350,000.
worldwide solution. In order for it to be viable, it needs to be costeffective.” – Ron Reis, vice president of engineering, REC Silicon
quote: “It was a bit of a gamble. This technology is brand new.”
sustainable communities & green
building
green enterprise & technology
habitat bank, kirkland
www.habitatbank.com
what it’s doing: Purchasing land or partnering with
landowners to form “mitigation banks,” parcels of land in
which developers can then purchase credits in order to satisfy
mitigation requirements to offset development elsewhere within
the same watershed.
where it’s doing it: Habitat Bank currently has four
mitigation banks, including the 225-acre Snohomish Basin
Mitigation Bank. Approved in 2005, it was the first private
entrepreneurial wetland mitigation bank in the state. Subsequent
banks include the Columbia River Mitigation Bank, a 153-acre
project in partnership with the Port of Vancouver; the Battle
Ground Consolidated Mitigation Project, a 60-acre partnership
with the City of Battle Ground; and the East Fort Lewis Mitigation
Bank, 113 acres of wetlands within the East Fort Lewis Watershed.
quote: “I had an opportunity after 25 years in the computer
software business to do a career change. I took a week off and jumped
into this.” – Victor Woodward, owner, Habitat Bank
30 association of washington business
– Bob Raphael, co-owner, Service Linen Supply
eco chemical, inc., seattle
ecochemical.com, www.eco-templine.com
what it makes: Water-soluble wood stain, and Temp-Line, a
removable paint for synthetic and natural grass athletic fields.
why it’s special: Allows athletic teams to quickly repaint fields for different
events and reduce package size, dramatically lowering shipping costs.
how it happened: Initially worked with the Seattle Seahawks to
develop paint that could hold up to rain, snow and sporting use and
yet quickly and easily be removed in order to accommodate a different
paint configuration for the Seattle Sounders soccer team, which shares
CenturyLink field in Seattle.
claim to fame: Eco’s Temp-Line grass paint is now used by 80 percent
of NFL teams that play on multi-use fields, and it was used for the first
time this year on a Super Bowl field.
quote: “This is going to be interesting … my paint is the only reason they can
do it.” – Mark Cheirrett, president and chief technical officer, EcoChemical, on
the prospect of the Seahawks, Sounders and Washington Huskies all sharing
CenturyLink Field this fall.