Wisconsin - Thirty-five professionals completed WasteCap Wisconsin's public training program on Tuesday in Oconomowoc making them among the state's first trained professionals in construction and demolition waste management and recycling.

"It was good to hear two passionate people preaching about recycling in general and construction and demolition waste in particular," said Ken Barnes of Waste Management and Research Center of Champaign, IL who attended the training program.

The public training is the first of its kind in Wisconsin to train professionals in the construction, demolition and waste management industries the skills needed to develop, manage, monitor, document and promote successful construction and demolition debris recycling programs.

"I highly recommend this course for general contractors and architects," said attendee Eric Truelove, Director of Sustainable Design for The Renschler Company in Madison.

As the industry moves toward a trend in sustainable development, WasteCap's program was created to help professionals learn about opportunities that will allow them to meet reuse and recycling requirements while reducing disposal costs. Jobsite waste reduction, reuse and recycling allows contractors and owners to use project funds for their projects rather than for waste disposal. Contractors who know how to recycle will be at a market advantage with the advent of the sustainable movement marked by the Governor's mandate for "green" building on state projects, Madison and Milwaukee's Green programs, and the interest in LEED certified projects throughout the state.

"I do not understand why a contractor would not want to recycle," attendee Heidi Brandt of HMB Contractors in Milwaukee said, "It not only makes sense, it makes money."

Participants who successfully completed the training program earned three-year WasteCap Accreditation as Professionals in Construction and Demolition Waste Management and Recycling.

WasteCap, a statewide nonprofit organization, has successfully implemented waste management plans on more than $2 billion worth of construction and demolition projects throughout the state, saving businesses over $1 million in avoided disposal costs through recycling and reuse. WasteCap's projects have diverted over 84 million pounds of waste from landfills through effective construction and demolition waste management plans.

WasteCap received a grant from the U.S. EPA in 2004 to develop a comprehensive training program and toolkit. As a pilot project in 2005, the training program was rolled out and tested at three sponsor sites: J.H. Findorff & Sons, Oscar J. Boldt Construction and The Jansen Group. In 2006, the U.S. EPA and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources are providing additional funding to test to impact of the training and establish online documentation of recycling results.

To view a list of all professionals who have earned WasteCap Accreditation, visit www.wastecapwi.org/trainedpros. The training program is sponsored by J.H. Findorff & Sons, Oscar J. Boldt Construction, The Jansen Group, U.S. EPA and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

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