Gov. Tom Corbett Thursday announced that 19 organizations involved in 16 environmental projects from across the state will receive the 2013 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence.

“This administration values innovation and hard work that positively impacts the environment,” Corbett said. “These organizations have proven that they too take those principles to heart.”

Any Pennsylvania business, school, government agency, trade organization, non-profit organization or agribusiness that has completed projects to promote environmental stewardship and economic development was eligible to apply for the award.

The winners were selected by DEP and the non-profit organization Pennsylvania Environmental Council.

PEC will host a dinner to honor the award winners April 17 at the Hilton in downtown Harrisburg. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Richard Allan will be the keynote speaker.

“Every year, I am impressed by the diversity of the award winners and the many ways they innovate,” DEP Secretary Mike Krancer said. “Their efforts play a big part in protecting Pennsylvania’s air, land and water.”

The winning projects include beekeeping, abandoned mine reclamation, brownfields redevelopment, road improvements and the use of alternative energy, among others.

The 19 winners of the 2013 Governor’s Environmental Excellence Awards are listed below, by county and project location:

Allegheny

-- Propel Andrew St. High School – High School Beekeeping;

-- RiverQuest – Exploring the Marcellus Shale Outreach Program; and

-- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center – Creation of an Energy and Environmental Engineering Department at a Healthcare Facility

Berks

-- East Penn Manufacturing Co. Inc. – Grid Scale Energy Storage Demonstration for Ancillary Services Using Deka Unigy Ultrabattery Technology

Delaware

-- The Boeing Company – Central Utility Plant Building 86-4-14

Elk

-- Bennett Branch Watershed Association – Dents Run Watershed Restoration Project (see related story);

-- Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation – Dents Run Watershed Restoration Project;

-- Western Pennsylvania Conservancy – Dents Run Watershed Restoration Project; and

-- P&N Coal Company, Inc. – Dents Run Watershed Restoration Project

Huntingdon

-- Shoup’s Run Watershed Association – Miller Run Brook Trout Enhancement Project

Lancaster

-- Kline’s Services – Phase II: Methane Digester Electrical Generation; and

-- Rettew Associates Inc. – Chesapeake Energy Roadway Restoration and Upgrade

Lehigh

-- The Seed Farm – New Farmer Training Program

Luzerne

-- Earth Conservancy – Huber IV Mine Land Reclamation Project

Lycoming

-- Jersey Shore Steel Company –Making and Marketing the World’s Greenest Steel (Facility located in Clinton County)

Potter

-- Hoopes Turf Farm Inc. – The Ulysses Liquefied Natural Gas Vehicle Diesel Reduction Project

Schuylkill

-- Partnership for the Delaware Estuary – Schuylkill Action Network Source Water Protection Initiative

York

-- Harley Davidson Motor Company Inc. – Harley Davidson Promotes Redevelopment in York County; and

-- SPX Cooling Technologies – Lean and Clean Manufacturing

For more information, visit the Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence webpage.

NewsClip: Earth Conservancy Earns Statewide Environmental Award

4/8/2013