Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Commissioner Will Toor earns accolades for leadership in waste reduction
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 30, 2008
CONTACT: Patricia Demchak, Boulder County Public Information Officer, 303-441-3399, pdemchak@bouldercounty.org or Erin Makowsky, Eco-Cycle Zero Waste Services Coordinator, 303-444-6634
Commissioner Will Toor earns accolades for leadership in waste reduction
Eco-Cycle awards Toor with Mary Wolf Community Leader Award
(Boulder, Colo.) – In recognition for his leadership in ushering Boulder County closer to the goal of producing zero waste “or darn near,” Boulder County Commissioner Will Toor was awarded the Mary Wolff Community Leader Award by Eco-Cycle on Earth Day.
The Mary Wolff award, named for one of Eco-Cycle’s founders and longest-standing board member in its history, honors those in our community who have demonstrated exceptional leadership in moving our community toward Zero Waste. This year’s award was presented to Will Toor, Boulder County Commissioner, for his leadership in making Boulder County one of the first communities in the nation to adopt a Zero Waste resolution. Through his tenure on the Boulder City Council and as a county commissioner, Will has been a truly visionary Zero Waste champion.
“In a community that is so progressive in terms of reaching for the highest levels of waste diversion through recycling, reuse and composting, I am truly honored to receive this award,” Toor said. “I would like to add that we couldn’t be where we are without the huge contributions that have been made by County employees and the leadership of my fellow Commissioners, Cindy Domenico and Ben Pearlman.”
Since being elected Commissioner in 2004, Toor has led the County’s Sustainability Initiative and, in collaboration with Commissioners Domenico and Pearlman, worked to enact policies and programs that reduce waste, conserve energy and resources and support the development of renewable energy sources. In addition to supporting the County’s internal Zero Waste pilot program, Toor helped shepherd in the County’s new BuildSmart program, a residential green building code that requires on-site recycling, deconstruction and waste reduction for new residential building projects in unincorporated Boulder County. In addition to its waste reduction goals, BuildSmart’s primary focus is on reducing energy consumption by new residences.
During Will’s tenure, the Board of County Commissioners has also funded the construction of a new hazardous waste facility; purchase of an air curtain burner and biomass heating system that reduce wood chip waste from forest thinning projects; and conversion of the Boulder County Recycling Center into a single-stream facility to increase the ease of recycling throughout the county.
Boulder County also won Eco-Cycle’s Zero Waste Business Award for Outstanding Composting and Recycling Program (for an office-based business) for the county’s Zero Waste Pilot Program. The internal program has made composting and recycling an easy, everyday reality for County employees at the County's four-building downtown Courthouse Complex. The pilot has been so successful that it will be phased in to all County buildings in 2008 and is expected to be fully implemented by the first quarter of 2009.
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Dan Rowland, Communications SpecialistBoulder County Commissioners’ Office
drowland@bouldercounty.org
303-441-3399
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