In Grand Junction, Colorado, six organizations partnered up to install a cell phone charging station solely powered by solar panels on the campus of West Middle School, which is part of School District 51. Alpine Bank, Capco, LLC, High Noon Solar, School District 51, Reynolds Polymer Technology, and West Star Aviation are all current or former members of ELP and are responsible for the implementation of this project. This charging station is dedicated to Heidi Ragsdale, a former West Middle School teacher and proud advocate of the MESA Club for the school district’s middle and high school students.

This level of collaboration and engagement is a big part of what makes ELP such a wonderful community, and it exemplifies the best of what our members have to offer. Thank you to our whole Western Slope ELP Community for showcasing what it is to be Environmental Leaders!

Management and Engineering Services, LLC would like to recognize the five people in the organization who make up the management system team: Melissa DeCino, Melissa Brashers, Kim Bonds, Linda McFarland, and Jade Foley. These five individuals are responsible for the wide-ranging conservation initiatives at the Longmont facility, including efforts to reduce water use, waste, energy consumption, and emissions.

When you arrive at the facility, you will see Xeriscape landscaping to reduce water use for irrigation, a bicycle rack to encourage employees to ride to work, and a Level 2 electric vehicle charging station which is free to anyone wishing to charge while at the office. LED floodlights are also used for the parking lot and surrounding area. In the offices, every lighting system is LED and lights are on occupancy sensors to reduce energy consumption. In the restrooms, water devices have been replaced with WaterSense low-flow alternatives and cloth towels are used rather than disposable paper towels.

In the lobby, you can see certificates of certification for five management systems, including ISO 14001 and being certified as a “net-zero greenhouse gas emission” company.

These fantastic results are all tied to the five people listed above who are not only dedicated, but also strive to keep making improvements in the commitments of Management and Engineering Services, LLC. Thank you all for your hard work!

The City of Louisville Water Treatment Plant’s Water Plant Optimization Project has been a vital part in their mission to optimize the plant process, reduce waste, minimize costs, and conserve water.

The project actually implemented Machine Learning and Neural Networks to predict changes in plant processes! This logical, advanced, and practical approach to push past the norms of typical optimization projects saved an estimated 9 million gallons of water over the course of 2020 and 120 hours of operator labor time. This is enough water to supply approximately 250 homes with water for an entire year.

Lastly, this project also reduces the waste of expensive chemicals that have a significant impact on the environment, which has contributed to a further reduced carbon footprint.

This project showcases exceptional innovation, and really illustrates what kind of cutting edge ideas can get implemented when a team comes together to create change. Congratulations to the whole Louisville Water Team!

In 2018, Christie-Anne Edie at U.S. General Services Administration, Region 8, and her team developed a new process that allows privately-owned vehicles to use the eleven Level 2 electric vehicle charging stations that were installed at the Denver Federal Center in 2012.

Previously, federal policy made it difficult to allow for public use of these charging stations, but Edie and her team developed a process to meet updated federal requirements in order to allow the stations to be turned on and opened to the public in June of 2018.

Since then, these charging stations have been used over 1,118 times, providing 13,749 kWh of electricity to vehicles and saving 616kg of greenhouse gases compared with traditional fuel. According to the EPA, this equates to 15,486 miles driven by an average passenger vehicle!

As the first of its kind, this project continues to be used as an example of a successful community and workplace charging station, and demonstrates how long-term commitment from passionate leaders can make even difficult projects come to life. Great work!

The Leprino Foods Greeley Plant formed The LQCI Water Team to understand and reduce the facility’s water usage in 2020. In the last year, the team has successfully reduced the facility’s water usage by 300,000 gallons per day, which is approximately $1.6M in cost savings.

The team did this through specific system improvements and new approaches to existing systems. For example, milk is 88% water and through the revised cheese-making process, most of this water is now separated, sanitized, and reused. The simple act of sanitizing and reusing this water reduces city water consumption, and saves about 225,000 gallons/day.

The team also took on a cleaning optimization project to reduce water used in cleaning while retaining food safety. They also found ways to reuse rejected water from their primary processes in other areas of the plant, rather than letting it go to drain. Lastly, the team began a plant-wide competition to drive awareness to get operators involved in identifying leaks and other saving opportunities. Let’s hear it for the Leprino Water Team!