Big Diverters recycle 98% of construction and demolition waste
WasteCap Wisconsin Press Release, October 18, 2007

Madison, WI - Two nationally-noted Big Diverter awards were presented Oct. 17 at the second annual WasteCap Wisconsin R3 Awards. Miron Construction and Mortenson Construction, two large contractors in Wisconsin, were given the recycled green glass awards for achieving 98% recycling rates on both their projects.

Miron Construction received the Big Diverter award in the demolition category for the removal of three residence halls at UW-Whitewater. The demolition project makes room for the contractor to construct the College of Business and Economics. Concrete and brick from the buildings was transported to Mann Brothers to be ground and used as road base and aggregate for new concrete. More than 11,000 pounds of wood from the project will be reused by Compost Management as landscaping mulch. Cans, bottles and office paper from the project were taken to Southern Lakes Recycling in Elkhorn to be made into new products. The new College of Business and Economics building is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2009.

“More universities will be doing what UW-Whitewater has done,” Adel Tabrizi, Director of the Bureau of Architecture and Engineering for the Wisconsin Department of Administration, said at the beginning of the ceremony. According to Tabrizi, the state is moving forward with the governor’s initiative to require construction and demolition debris recycling on all state projects and plans to work with WasteCap Wisconsin on developing specifications for contractors who work with the state.

Mortenson Construction received the Big Diverter award in the construction category for the new Froedtert and Medical College Clinical Cancer Center in Wauwatosa. The project has recycled more than 41 million pounds of construction and demolition debris with much of the material being used to make new products. Glass from more than 500 light bulbs was ground and used in asphalt road products. More than 39 millions pounds of concrete will be used in new public roads and highways. Veolia Environmental Services is removing wood scrap from the project site to be used as landscaping mulch. Approximately 1.8 million pounds of metal will be processed Miller Compressing and used to make new commercial and industrial products. Through wood and cardboard recycling, the project has saved the equivalent of 891 trees. The Cancer Center is scheduled for completion in March 2008.

According to Mary Burke, Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Commerce, environmentally responsible business practices are “benefiting the bottom line.” Secretary Burke, along with the new secretary for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Matt Frank, addressed attendees and discussed the many ways state agencies are greening their practices and encouraging Wisconsin businesses, especially those in the construction industry, to do the same.

“Economics and the environment go hand in hand,” Secretary Frank said. “The DNR’s approaches over the past 35 years have been working but we want to try new things and working with organizations like WasteCap Wisconsin and its partners is part of that.”

The Outstanding Commitment Award was given to J.H. Findorff & Son, Inc. for its dedication to recycling on construction projects. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources was awarded with Outstanding Partnership for its support of WasteCap Wisconsin’s work in electronics recycling, food waste and construction and demolition debris recycling. Wisconsin Public Service was presented with the Innovative Achievement award for their recycling efforts on the Weston 4 Power Plant in Rothschild. Individual awards were given to David Shoemaker, Director of Construction Management for Boldt Construction in Appleton for his work on the WasteCap Wisconsin Board of Directors and John Reindl, Dane County’s Recycling Manager for volunteering his time and expertise to WasteCap Wisconsin.

The event, hosted and presented by The Daily Reporter, Waste Management Recycle America and Whole Foods took place at Lussier Family Heritage Center in Madison.