Morning Sessions Announced for Natural Leaders Event; Registration Deadline Extended
This year’s Natural Leaders Awards on Oct. 2 will feature a Best Practices Workshop from 9 – 11:30 a.m. where your fellow Partners will be sharing lessons they have learned during their time in the program. The speakers will target particular commitments at each level in the program.
Sessions will feature Partner case studies on supply chain activities, mentoring, sustainability, employee involvement, community education and outreach, and how small businesses can make a difference.
Online registration has been extended until Sept. 22. (The registration link at left also takes you to the agenda and directions to the Emory Conference Center.)
Eight New Partners Accepted During Spring Enrollment; One Partner Advances
We would like to welcome eight new Partners into the Partnership for a Sustainable Georgia and to congratulate one Partner for advancing to a higher level.The new Partners are: Blue Level, Milliken & Co. – Alma Plant, Milliken & Co. – Hillside Plant, and Milliken & Co. – Live Oak Complex; Yellow Level, C.A. Murren & Sons Co., Inc., McCorkle Nurseries, Inc., and NutraSweet Co.; White Level, Carpet America Recovery Effort and The Carpet and Rug Institute.
CH2M Hill, which joined the program at the White Level during the spring 2005 enrollment period, was accepted into the Yellow Level.
Open Enrollment — Partnership Program Now Accepting Applications
Applications are being accepted now through Oct. 31 for the Partnership Program. Help us spread the word about the Program to your colleagues. Potential Partners can find out more on our Web site.
Matching Grants Available for Yellow, Red and Blue Level Partners
Yellow, Red and Blue Level Partners are invited to apply for a matching grant to fund projects to evaluate or implement pollution prevention practices at their business. The deadline to apply for the P2 Adoption Funds is Oct. 2. Because the grants are made possible by the U.S. EPA’s Pollution Prevention Grants program, federal facilities are not eligible. Limited funds (up to $15,000 per project) are available on a competitive basis and require a one-to-one match. The amount awarded per project will depend on the number of proposals accepted and the amount of funding received from EPA. For more information about eligible projects and how to apply, go to the Partnership benefits Web page (please note that we have now opened the grant to Yellow Level Partners and this is not yet reflected in the materials on the web page).
Workshop Series to Cover Latest Environmental Updates and News in GA
Partners are invited to attend one of seven environmental network meetings being held around the state beginning Oct. 17. Sponsored by the Georgia Environmental Partnership (GEP), the meetings will cover the latest news on environmental issues in the state, including an OSHA update and a presentation on water conservation. Meetings are planned for Newnan, Tifton, Macon, Savannah, Augusta, Gainesville and Calhoun. For more information, including the dates, locations and how to register, visit the GEP Web page.
Water Conferences Put Out Calls for Papers, Abstracts
The Georgia Association of Water Professionals (GAWP) Industrial Conference and the Georgia Water Resources Conference (GWRC) are both seeking papers or abstracts for their events in 2007.
Technical sessions at the GAWP event will include case studies, regulatory updates and new developments in wastewater treatment; stormwater, watersheds, TMDLs; hazardous waste management and remediation; environmental management systems; waste minimization and resource conservation; operations and maintenance; laboratory issues; air pollution control; pretreatment programs; groundwater; information technology; and security.
If you would like to submit an abstract on a successful project at your business or organization, please contact Adrienne Thorpe at 404-165-7449 or adriethorpe@p2ad.org. The conference will be held in March 2007 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta.
The GWRC will be held March 27-29, 2007 at the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education. Abstracts and proposals for sessions, panels, workshops and exhibits are being sought on topics related to Georgia water, especially those addressing the conference theme of planning for sustainable growth and the effort to prepare a state water plan.
Short abstracts are due Sept. 15 and can be submitted via the Web site. Please visit the GWRC Web page for more detailed submittal information. To propose a conference event, send a descripton by Sept. 15 to Jenny Yearwood at yearod@uga.edu.
Save These Dates!
A one-day training on stakeholder engagement and performance reporting from P²AD and Ceres will be held Nov. 9 in Atlanta. This course will explain various performance reporting tools and protocols, examine sample sustainability reports, teach you how to identify and then engage your stakeholders, and give you ideas on how to assemble and distribute your report. More details will be announced soon.
Yellow and Red Level Partners are invited to attend an EMS training from Georgia Tech in Atlanta Nov. 29. This course will cover the basics of an EMS. The aspects and impacts training will walk participants through how to identify and pritorize their aspects and impacts – one of the first steps in developing an EMS. We encourage all Yellow and Red Level Partners in the area to send two or three staff members, first-timers as well as those needing a refresher course. More details to come.
Blue Level Partner Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation will be sponsoring the next Partner Roundtable meeting Dec. 12. All Red and Blue Level Partners are invited to attend. More details will be announced closer to the date.
Community Outreach Opportunities
Volunteers will clean up Wildcat Creek for Dunwoody Nature Center‘s from 9 – 11 a.m. Sept. 16. Following the clean-up, you can also learn about combating storm drain pollution. Bring a team from your business and spend the morning in the park! Go to www.dunwoodynature.org for details.
Help educate your employees, customers or community about water conservation using materials from a new statewide campaign. Go to www.conservewatergeorgia.net for daily conservation tips and educational materials you can use to start a campaign of your own. If your business has a lawn to manage, these tips might help you save water and money, too!
Baseline and Gap Assessments Available
As a Partner, you have access to many benefits including free, on-site technical assistance. Yellow Level Partners qualify for a baseline assessment. If you need help documenting your resource use, waste streams or emissions, this assessment will be invaluable. You will use the findings of the baseline as a starting point against which you will measure your progress. Yellow and Red Level Partners qualify for a gap assessment. This assessment will help you compare your current environmental management practices with the requirements of the Partnership Program or with an environmental management system (EMS). This exercise will help you find ways to develop or enhance your EMS. Learn more about the services available to you by visiting the benefits page on the Partnership Web site.