State officials have for the second year in a row recognized a company with facilities in Greensboro for having outstanding environmental performance.
Sam Hayes, general counsel for the state environmental agency, on Tuesday presented officials at TE Connectivity’s Burgess Road facility with a 2015 Environmental Steward Award, one of only 23 facilities in North Carolina to earn the coveted award for a commitment to superior environmental performance.
“TE Connectivity’s impressive track record has made the company a leader for other businesses striving to reduce their environmental footprint,” Hayes said. “The company now boasts two facilities in North Carolina that have achieved the highest standard in environmental stewardship. They illustrate how businesses and industries can reduce waste, use fewer resources and protect the bottom line.”
Last year, the state agency honored officials at the company’s Pegg Road facility with an Environmental Steward Award for its excellent environmental track record. TE Connectivity in Greensboro makes electrical connectors and other products for the automotive industry.
Stewards must demonstrate environmental leadership through a commitment to exemplary environmental performance beyond what is required by regulations. Stewards represent the highest of three levels of recognition for environmental performance in the state’s Environmental Stewardship Initiative.
Stewards are selected for the recognition after a rigorous review of their environmental performance by staff with the state agency and an external advisory board, which is appointed by the agency’s secretary and directs the initiative. The agency and the advisory board recommended TE Connectivity’s Burgess Road facility for the recognition because the facility has cut back on its energy use by 28 percent since 2010, is working toward sending no waste to the landfill, has a strong history of environmental compliance, and has conducted environmental education in the local community. The board and the agency also recognized the facility for sharing its energy reduction strategies with other Stewards as well as professional engineering organizations.
“We are proud of this latest award and honored to have been selected as a Steward in 2014 and now 2015,” said James Sharp, senior operations manager for TE’s Greensboro Automotive campus. “Our employees work hard every day to implement best practices and systems that help reduce environmental impacts. TE is committed to sustainability and corporate responsibility.”
For more information, visit the Environmental Stewardship Initiative’s website, http://www.ncesi.org, or contact Angela Barger, co-manager of the Environmental Stewardship Initiative, at 919-707-8126 or Angela.Barger@ncdenr.gov.