17^th annual Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Awards presented

The 17^th Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Awards were announced today during a ceremony at the Admiral�s Green Clubhouse in St. John�s. The ceremony was held to kick off Environment Week June 4 - 10, 2006. Clyde Jackman, Minister of Environment and Conservation, Shirley Fraize, president, Newfoundland and Labrador Women�s Institutes (NLWI), and John Scott, chairman and CEO, Multi-Materials Stewardship Board (MMSB) presented the awards to the recipients.

Minister Jackman congratulated this year's winners and thanked them for their efforts in protecting and preserving the environment. "Congratulations to this year�s winners for making such a significant contribution to our environment and natural heritage," said the minister. "It is an honour to acknowledge your outstanding commitment, dedication and leadership to the improvement and conservation of our environment."

The environmental awards are presented to individuals and groups who make an exceptional effort to create a healthier environment and to help promote and encourage environmentally friendly practices. Award winners also receive a $1,000 honourarium from MMSB to be used to continue their environmental project or donated in their name to an environmental organization or cause. Awards are presented in seven categories. This year�s winners are:

Individual: Madeline Norris, Conception Bay South

Community Group or Organization: VON Broadening Horizons Recycling, Gander
Honourable Mention: Canadian Diabetes Association, Newfoundland and Labrador Business Operations

Youth or Youth Group: The Poseidon Environmental Group, Old Perlican

School or Educational Institution: Morris Academy, Mount Pearl

Municipality or Regional Waste Management Committee: Town of Marystown

Business: Newfoundland Power, St. John�s

Lifetime Achievement: Laura Jackson, St. John�s

"The Newfoundland and Labrador Women's Institutes wish to congratulate all participants in this year's provincial Environmental Awards Program," said Shirley Fraize. "Through their collective efforts to enhance, protect and preserve our environment, we are all winners."

"MMSB is proud to support all those individuals who through their actions are making a real difference in Newfoundland and Labrador. Their passion to protect and preserve our environment for future generations is to be commended," said Mr. Scott.

The Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Awards Program is a joint initiative of the Department of Environment and Conservation, NLWI and MMSB. The Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Awards Program honors our outstanding leaders in environment and conservation. The environmental awards represent a public acknowledgment of the initiative, dedication, and hard work that individuals, communities, schools, and organizations have put into caring for our environment and the wise use of our natural heritage.

Media contact:

Diane Hart, Department of Environment and Conservation, (709) 729-2575, 685-4401
Deborah Slade, MMSB, (709) 753-0949
Sylvia Manning, NLWI, (709) 753-8780

Madeline Norris, Conception Bay South
A teacher at Paradise Elementary, Madeline has been the driving force behind several environmental projects that have reached beyond the school and into the community. A School Grounds Naturalization Project was started in 1999 with a goal to reclaim an unused section of land adjacent to the school and restore it as a natural habitat.

The site now includes an outdoor classroom with seating for up to 36 students, five large garden beds, a wildflower meadow, and a woodland area with walking trails. The area is ideal for experiencing first hand environmental issues such as conservation, wildlife habitats, ecosystems, biodiversity and erosion. The project has provided an ideal experience for hands-on learning and students have been actively involved since the beginning. The evolution from outdoor classroom to community garden and trail system has provided hours of enjoyment and learning experience for residents and students alike.

VON Broadening Horizons Recycling, Gander
Broadening Horizons Recycling is a project of the Gander branch of the VON with an objective to expand the activities and opportunities for individuals with disabilities in the community. The recycling program is an initiative that not only provides meaningful employment to those who participate, but also has extended a critical environmental service to the community.

Broadening Horizons Recycling now offers curbside collection of beverage containers, paper products and cardboard to the residents of Gander, as well as a pick-up service for participating commercial establishments. Officially launched in January 2005, the program has already diverted 624,851 beverage containers and 270,617 pounds of paper and cardboard from the local landfill.

Honourable Mention: Canadian Diabetes Association, Newfoundland and Labrador Business Operations

The Canadian Diabetes Association is a non-profit organization that has been in operation since 1953. In addition to raising funds for Canadians affected by diabetes, the organization also diverts millions of pounds of material from landfills across the country on an annual basis. Programs such as: Clothesline, Diabetes Recycle Ink, Car Heaven and Project Redial are important reuse and recycling initiatives that make a direct contribution to more than 31,000 people in Newfoundland and Labrador living with diabetes.

In this province alone, the Canadian Diabetes Association annually collects and recycles over 1,850,000 pounds of cloth, 494,000 pounds of miscellaneous goods and over 300,000 pounds of furniture.

Poseidon Environmental Group, Old Perlican
The Poseidon Environmental Group is made up of young people from grades 7-12 and has done excellent work to introduce and enhance the 'green space' on their school grounds at Baccalieu Collegiate in Old Perlican. These efforts have not only been successful in the immediate area of the school but have also had a significant impact on the community of Old Perlican. An extremely active Junior Chapter of Ocean Net, the Poseidon Environmental Group has assumed an important community role in maintaining the environmental integrity of town sites, beaches and shoreline.

Recent accolades for the Poseidon Environmental Group include the Toyota Earth Day Foundation scholarship for 2005/06 and the successful adoption and delivery of Ocean Net's 10 point Lifestyle Challenge to the local school community and town council.

A kindergarten to grade three school, Morris Academy has implemented a number of environmental programs that make the school a deserving winner of this year�s environmental award. Their participation in MMSB's Green School Routine has steadily increased and the students have taken the recycling message home to their families and friends. Monies raised from beverage container recycling are reinvested into the school in a number of environmentally friendly ways, including beautification of the school grounds. Morris Academy is also a champion of paper recycling. They reduce, reuse and recycle whenever possible.

The Town of Marystown has installed a wetland wastewater treatment system like no other in the province. An engineered wetland using natural plants, the system is based on biological activity for reduction of sewage. Provided by Abydoz Environmental Inc., this system operates without the use of electricity and with no chemicals. The process represents an alternative to conventional mechanical treatment systems and is highly sustainable.

The community is also very involved in 'greening' activities, including extensive naturalization work, recycling and promotion of backyard composting.

Environmental awareness and environmental diligence are a part of normal business practices for Newfoundland Power and this approach has resulted in an extensive list of initiatives being undertaken in the name of environmental stewardship. In 2005, employees were offered backyard compost bins at a subsidized price by Newfoundland Power. Approximately 130 employees or 25 per cent of its workforce took advantage of the offer. Extensive recycling programs both in the office and the field are regularly followed. Asbestos removal, anti-idling, fuel storage tank replacement and site remediation are a few of these initiatives.

Community leadership and education are well demonstrated by the Newfoundland Power Envirofest celebrations that take place on an annual basis throughout the province. In 2005, approximately 5,000 community members and over 125 organizations and individuals partnered in these events.

This is a new category in 2006 and Laura Jackson is a very deserving recipient of this award. Over the course of her career, Laura has demonstrated a deep commitment to environmental issues through all aspects of her life.

Working as executive director of the Protected Areas Association for 15 years, Laura has been an effective voice for conservation of natural heritage within the province, country, and internationally. A dedicated volunteer, she is a member of the province's Wilderness and Ecological Reserves Advisory Council and has served as the World Wildlife Fund's regional coordinator for the Endangered Spaces Campaign. In addition, Laura has served 13 years as a national trustee on the board of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society.

Her background includes a wide range of accomplishments and accolades that reach beyond environmental stewardship, making a tremendous contribution to education, women's rights and the arts.

She has a great passion for Newfoundland and Labrador and continues to work tirelessly toward the preservation of our environment.

2006 06 05                         1:00 p.m.