News

Wheelabrator Concord Facility Excels in Safety
OSHA AWARDS ELITE VPP "STAR" CERTIFICATION

Penacook, NH-October 30, 2002- The Wheelabrator Concord Waste-to-Energy facility will be recognized today as one of the safest industrial facilities in the United States. At ceremonies in Penacook this morning, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety, and Health Administration (OSHA) "Star" certification will be officially awarded to the 13-year-old plant. The Star certification, through OSHA's Voluntary Protection Program (VPP), is the top federal safety award, honoring health and safety excellence.

J. Drennan Lowell, president of Hampton, New Hampshire-based Wheelabrator Technologies Inc., will be on hand to help raise the OSHA VPP flag signifying the plant's elite new status. "This is an important achievement for the people here at Wheelabrator Concord," he said. "It is also another forward step in Wheelabrator's mission to have each of its plants reach this level of safety excellence." Wheelabrator operates 24 independent power and waste-to-energy facilities throughout the United States. Two other Wheelabrator projects are previous recipients of Star certification or Merit awards, a precursor to full Star status.

Today's honor places Wheelabrator Concord as one of only 850 VPP Star certified facilities out of the more than 6.5 million U.S. worksites eligible to earn Star status. Only 25 Star certifications have been awarded in the industrial category to which the Wheelabrator Concord facility belongs.

Wheelabrator Concord Plant Manager John LaRiviere commended all of his Plant's employees on reaching the safety milestone, noting, "This was the ultimate goal of every plant in every industry. Now our people know they're working at one of the safest facilities in the country. We've raised the bar on staying safe- and it was all voluntary."

To qualify for Star status, a worksite must have a three-year average injury rate below that of its industry average and must have demonstrated safety programs that greatly exceed OSHA standards. OSHA auditors recommend Star status after completing a comprehensive evaluation of a facility's safety program, including its managers' leadership, employee involvement, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training.

Wheelabrator Concord is a 500-ton-per-day municipal waste-to-energy facility opened in 1989 to serve the disposal needs of 27 communities throughout central New Hampshire. The plant converts the trash into enough clean energy to supply the electricity needs of 12,000 homes. Wheelabrator Concord is owned and operated by Wheelabrator Technologies Inc. (www.wheelabratortechnologies.com) a wholly owned subsidiary of Waste Management, Inc.

More News