Schools Chemical Cleanout Campaign Recognition Recipient Accomplishments

October 22, 2009

Alabama Department of Environmental Management

Montgomery, AL

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management is being recognized for providing chemical removal services and chemical management guidance to the state=92s K-12 schools.  The agency has provided safe storage guidance; lab packed and removed waste chemicals for proper treatment and disposal; promoted micro-scale chemistry; and promoted partnering with Alabama Science in Motion, which has supplied lab chemicals and equipment and removed unused chemicals, experiment wastes, and unneeded equipment.  The agency=92s work has resulted in 8,640 pounds of waste chemicals removed from 36 Alabama schools.  The Alabama Department of Environmental Management also coordinated with Alabama Science in Motion to respond to an emergency request to assist a school  with the cleanup, removal, and disposal of chemicals after the school was damaged by a tornado.

Ash Grove Cement Company 

Overland Park, MO

Ash Grove Cement Company is being recognized for their participation in a recent United We Serve: Schools Chemical Cleanout Campaign project in Grandview, Missouri. Ash Grove made a generous donation to cover the cost of removing unwanted, unneeded, and excessive chemicals from Grandview Middle and High Schools.  Ultimately, the chemical cleanout resulted in nearly 500 pounds of chemicals removed from the schools, including toxics, flammables, corrosives, and caustics.  The success of this endeavor has inspired Ash Grove Cement Company to encourage other company sites to get involved in their local schools.

BASF Corporation=97White Stone Facility

Spartanburg, SC

BASF-Whitestone is being recognized for their assistance to Spartanburg, South Carolina high schools.  BASF evaluated the high schools=92 chemical laboratory equipment and removed outdated, broken, and unreliable apparatus.  In addition, company personnel provided guidance and assistance with obtaining appropriate chemical laboratory items to replace the old equipment.  BASF has also worked with the schools to provide teacher training in responsible chemical management practices that can be implemented in schools.

Cadence Environmental Energy

Michigan City, IN

Cadence Environmental Energy is being recognized for their participation in a recent United We Serve event in Grandview, Missouri.  Cadence worked closely with Ash Grove Cement Company to provide support services, including hazardous waste laboratory analysis for materials coming to Ash Grove from Grandview schools.  As a supply manager, the time and resources they donated to Ash Grove and PCI/Tradebe enabled  the efficient and effective completion of the project.  Also, through applying innovative technology, Cadence continually works with Ash Grove and other cement companies to minimize the use of fossil fuels by maximizing the use of alternative fuels, such as the materials from the Grandview clean up. As Cadence continues to collaborate with other SC3 partners, they will ensure that chemicals removed from these schools are managed in the safest and most appropriate manner.

Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Environmental Protection Department

Eagle Butte, SD

The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Environmental Protection Department is being recognized for their work to remove unwanted, unneeded, and outdated chemicals from Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation schools.  The department gained the support, cooperation, and participation of school administrators and staff, which facilitated efforts to identify unsafe chemical situations and harmful chemicals.  The department facilitated chemical inventories and worked with an SC3 charter partner, who donated their services to safely lab pack and collect chemicals for shipment and proper disposal.  A total of 1,515 pounds of chemicals were removed from schools, including: neurotoxins, carcinogens, toxic, ignitable, and shock sensitive chemicals. 

The Dow Chemical Company

Midland, MI

The Dow Chemical Company is being recognized for their participation in an SC3 project with K-12 schools in the vicinity of Saginaw, Michigan.  In 2006, Dow Chemical Company partnered with EPA Region 5 and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to train teachers from 36 middle and high schools in responsible chemical management, and removed more than 3,600 pounds of hazardous, unneeded, and outdated laboratory chemicals from 32 schools.  In 2007, a similar project was carried out in K-12 schools near Ann Arbor, Michigan.  =46rom these projects, Dow developed a flow chart to facilitate the development of corporate, state, and federal partnerships to improve chemical management in K-12 schools that they will continue to share with other corporations embarking on SC3 projects. 

EMC Insurance Companies

Des Moines, IA

EMC Insurance Companies is being recognized for providing responsible chemical management solutions to Iowa schools.  EMC Insurance Companies negotiated cost-effective disposal services for schools to facilitate chemical cleanouts.  Additionally, they provided free-of-charge education to teachers, staff, and administrators on proper management of their chemical stocks and prevention of hazardous situations.  Their efforts have resulted in the removal of more than 250,000 pounds of hazardous chemicals from approximately 320 schools, and they have conducted 50-100 training sessions.  EMC Insurance Companies involvement with SC3 projects in Iowa has made schools safer and healthier for students, teachers, and staff across the state.

The Missouri Center for Safe Schools (MCSS)

Kansas City, MO

The Missouri Center for Safe Schools at UMKC is being recognized for their dedication to responsible chemical management in K-12 schools throughout Missouri.  The center provides technical assistance to schools, engages in outreach to promote the SC3 program, and maintains a web site with SC3 resources.  In 2008, the center partnered with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to do a statewide school chemical cleanout.  =46rom February 2008 to June 2009, 50,134 pounds of chemicals were removed from 227 Missouri schools. 

Peaks to Prairies Pollution Prevention Information Center, Montana State University

Bozeman, MT

The Peaks to Prairies Pollution Prevention Center is being recognized for their support of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Environmental Protection Department in their school chemical cleanout project.  Peaks to Prairies Pollution Prevention Information Center applied grant funding for school chemical cleanout activities to Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation schools with a focus on chemical inventories, cost estimates, and chemical collection.  The center also worked to locate funding sources and obtain funds for the chemical cleanouts.  Future activities include holding workshops, teacher education, and staff training on responsible chemical management. 

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

Harrisburg, PA

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is being recognized for their participation in an SC3 pilot project that has benefited ten Pennsylvania schools.  The agency provided resources to enable the schools to perform their own chemical inventories; developed, in collaboration with EPA Region 3 staff, a lessons-learned report that gives recommendations on proper chemical management in schools; and disseminated the reports to all Pennsylvania school districts.  As a result of the pilot project, over 5,600 pounds of chemicals were removed from the schools, including toxic, flammable, and corrosive chemicals. 

Tradebe Pollution Control Industries (PCI)

East Chicago, IN

Pollution Control Industries (or PCI) is being recognized for the support they provided to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Environmental Protection Department in their school chemical cleanout project.  The company offered $26,000 worth of free services to the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation schools to collect and dispose of the toxic and hazardous chemicals.  PCI removed, shipped, and properly disposed of 1,515 pounds of chemicals at their treatment, storage, and disposal facility in Indiana.