On May 7, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the 2019 winners of the National WasteWise Awards. Peace Dining Corporation of Philadelphia received an honorable mention in the Large Business Category.

In 2018, EPA’s WasteWise partners, including recent award winners, collectively reported preventing and diverting more than 1.9 million tons of municipal solid waste that would otherwise be disposed in landfills or incinerated, saving close to 100 million dollars in landfill tipping fees.

Peace Dining Corporation is committed to achieving complete corporate sustainability, including resource conservation and waste management. The corporation began implementing its Environmental Management System (EMS) in 2015 to improve its environmental performance.

PDC received ISO 14001 EMS certification in 2016 for identifying, measuring and managing its environmental impacts through the continuous improvement process.

In 2018, the corporation achieved a 73 percent waste diversion rate. It diverted 105 tons of waste from landfills by preventing 20 tons of corrugated cardboard and wood pallets from being generated in the first place and recycling 85 tons of mixed recyclables and mixed organics.

The company also implemented bio-digester technology at its central kitchen to manage its organic waste and no longer sends any organic waste from its central kitchen to landfill. With these actions, PDC saves approximately $8,000 in hauler fees annually.

“WasteWise winners demonstrate outstanding leadership in sustainability, waste reduction, diversion and environmental stewardship,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Cosmo Servidio. “Sustainability-focused organizations like the Peace Dining Corporation increase awareness and knowledge about reducing waste and provide examples and inspiration for other organizations to take responsible actions toward a sustainable future.”

EPA’s WasteWise program encourages organizations and businesses to achieve sustainability in their practices and reduces select industrial wastes. Participants in the program work to prevent and divert waste that would otherwise be disposed of in landfills or incinerated.

Every year, EPA recognizes WasteWise partners in various categories who report the best overall improvement in waste prevention and recycling activities, when compared to the previous year.

Click Here for more information about this year’s winners.

Visit EPA’s WasteWise webpage for more information on the program.

[Posted: May 7, 2020]

5/11/2020