SMALL FIRMS (<$10 MILLION)

Gold Medal:
Combustion Controls Solutions & Environmental Services, Inc. (CCS&ES) for doubling revenues in five out of the past 11 years and tripling revenues in three of those five years. CCS&ES, founded in September, 1995, provides a broad range of aftermarket services, including engineering and planned and emergency maintenance retrofits and rebuilds, for thermal oxidizer systems for air pollution control. According to CCS&ES, the latest oxidizer technology, next-generation products, and state-of-the art installation goes into every engineering project that the company undertakes. EBJ also recognizes CCS&ES for community service: In the summer of 2006, the firm’s president closed the corporate offices so that employees could participate in the Put-in-Bay harbor cleanup on South Bass Island in Lake Erie. CCS&ES sponsored the event and donated time, divers and ground crew to help clean up the harbor.

Silver Medal:
Hard Hat Services (HHS) for rapid growth in the environmental market, from two employees and revenue of $250,000 in 2000 to 31 employees and $7.3 million in revenues in 2005. The firm is a full-service engineering and construction company, providing engineering, construction, management and design-build services primarily in the environmental industry from five locations in the Midwest. HHS has ongoing contracts with many Fortune 500 clients, and has solid relationships that lead to continued backlog and future opportunities. On January 1, 2005, HHS acquired northwest Indiana-based Harrington Engineering & Construction, which provides project solutions for the marine, dredging, and sediment restoration market. HHS was named to the ZweigWhite Hot Firm list in 2006, with the highest percentage growth (484%) of any firm on the list. HHS attributes this sustained growth to a common-sense attitude, excellent customer service, and a team of practical, experienced personnel. By using a client-centered approach on each project, the company has a client retention rate of 90%, as well as numerous referrals from current clients.

Bronze Medal:
Dallas Contracting Co., Inc. for significant and sustained revenue growth since 2001, with revenues increasing from $2.4 million in 2001 to projected revenue of over $6.5 million for 2006. Dallas Contracting provides demolition, brownfield redevelopment, on-site concrete crushing, used equipment salvage and scrap recycling services on a nationwide basis. The increase in revenues is directly attributed to the company’s on-site concrete and aggregate crushing services and salvage operations. In 2001, 20,000 tons of concrete, brick and masonry were crushed on site and used as backfill, which has increased to nearly 200,000 tons for 2006. Dallas Contracting also performs asset recovery of used and surplus equipment and it salvages and sells building materials (wood beams, timbers, planking, bricks) from their demolition projects that would otherwise be sent to a landfill. These salvage and asset-recovery operations not only generate revenue for the company but help their clients offset some of the demolition costs.

SMALL FIRMS ($10-25 MILLION)

Gold Medal:
Ecovation for growing from a $2 million company with 17 employees in 2003 to a $24 million company with 60 on staff in 2006. In 1995, Ecovation co-founder Robert Cummings first pursued the commercial application of Mobilized Film Technology (MFT), an anaerobic treatment process that converts organics in wastewater to renewable energy. Since then, sales have grown exponentially. Revenues doubled between 2004 and 2005, and between 2005 and 2006 grew 18-fold. Ecovation touts its technology as one of the cleanest, most efficient available, and the company is committed to continually improving its wastewater treatment solutions. Recently, the firm acquired the license for a complementary anaerobic technology that treats waste streams with compositions that are not best-suited to treatment in the MFT. This move allowed the firm to offer the most cost-effective solutions for an even wider range of applications. In 2005, Ecovation acquired Krofta Technologies, a global provider of dissolved air flotation systems and further expanded Ecovation’s line of wastewater treatment systems. Krofta’s clients worldwide open the door to installations outside of North America, where energy and waste management are even larger concerns. Over the past four years, Ecovation has gained global and U.S. Fortune 500 clients such as Kraft, Constellation, Unilever, Group Danone, and Coca-Cola.

Silver Medal:
Sovereign Consulting for increasing revenues during its 2006 fiscal year by more than 53% to $19 million, and for increasing staff by 53 employees during FY2006. Since Sovereign entered into the environmental industry in 1999, the firm has grown from 19 to 121 employees located in 11 offices, primarily on the East Coast. Over the past two years, the company has garnered more than $20 million in federal prime contracts and secured contracts with Fortune 100 companies including BP and Shell. During this period, Sovereign made the jump from its traditional commercial client base into the federal arena with the award of a number of major contracts, including five federal contracts to provide a full range of environmental consulting and remediation services to the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Military Academy, and EPA.

Bronze Medal:
Thermal Remediation Services (TRS) for increasing revenues from $150,000 in 2000 to $10.2 million 2006. TRS provides in situ thermal remediation of soil and groundwater using Electrical Resistance Heating (ERH). TRS has completed more than 75% of the world’s cleanup projects using ERH remediation and claims to be the leader in guaranteed fixed-price remediation contracting using ERH techniques based on its successful remediation of sites on public, retail, industrial, and military facilities, covering a broad range of subsurface conditions and logistical challenges. TRS has also recently developed patent-pending processes to facilitate heat-enhanced in situ degradation utilizing both biotic and abiotic mechanisms. TRS’s equipment fleet is valued at over $3.5 million with a capacity to perform 12 full-scale projects simultaneously, and the TRS professional staff has completed over 50 ERH remediation projects with a 100% OSHA safety rating.

Bronze Medal:
U.S. Environmental for increasing revenues from $1 million in 2001 to more than $12 million in 2006, exceeding projections for the fifth consecutive year. The company continues to target the transportation and disposal and industrial cleaning service markets, but by leveraging a portion of the additional cash flow created from its growth, U.S. Environmental has added experienced remediation professionals and additional equipment to enhance its environmental service offerings. Since its reorganization in 2001, the company has experienced significant growth, receiving numerous awards both locally and nationally. The company has made the Philadelphia Business Journal/Wharton School of Business’s “Philadelphia 100” list two years running, and Entrepreneur Magazine listed U.S. Environmental among its 2005 “Hot100” companies.

Honorable Mention:
Lantec Products for increasing sales over the past five years by approximately 120%, from $6 million to $13 million. Lantec continues to expand its business of designing and manufacturing ceramic, plastic and metal packing materials used in air and water cleaning systems. Under the leadership of President K.C. Lang, Lantec has designed innovative and effective products for pollution control, such as the Multi-Layer Media (MLM), which the company describes as the most efficient heat-recovery media for regenerative thermal oxidizers (RTOs). As a result of the packing supplied by Lantec, RTOs have evolved from an emerging technology into a widely accepted technology. Lantec customers include Eisenmann, Harrington, Intel, Megtec and Siemens. Lantec provides free bed design services with its media, as well as free design analysis/consultation for bio-trickling filter solutions regarding odor control problems.

Honorable Mention:
Marstel-Day LLC for significantly expanding staff, from 15 to 23 people, as a consequence of a five-year, $6-million contract from Army to perform environmental assessments (EAs) at Army bases slated for closure. This award marked Marstel-Day’s entry into an entirely new service area; until 2006, the firm had developed property disposal strategies for Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) sites with conservation reuse components but had not performed any EAs. Current closure projects being executed by Marstel-Day include EAs for disposal and reuse of the following: the Kansas Army Ammunition Plant; the Lonestar Army Ammunition Plant in Texas; the U.S. Army Garrison, Michigan; Fort McPherson and Fort Gillem in Georgia; Fort Monroe in Virginia; the Charles E. Kelly Support Center in Pennsylvania; and the Riverbank Army Ammunition Plant in California. Marstel-Day is also executing realignment actions at Fort Eustis and Red River Army Depot in Texas. In addition to evaluating BRAC impacts, these NEPA documents address other changes taking place at Army installations brought on by Army transformation, re-stationing of troops from Europe, and modularity actions.

MEDIUM FIRMS ($25-$100 MILLION)

Gold Medal:
ENTACT, a privately held firm founded in 1991, for growing revenues from $35 million in 2003 to $130 million in 2006. The company provides environmental services to the private sector. ENTACT’s growth has been 100% organic; the company has never made an acquisition. ENTACT ranks as the second largest supplier of environmental hazardous waste services to the private sector, according to Engineering News Record’s 2006 list of the top 200 design firms. ENTACT currently employs approximately 480 full time associates, and its work history includes the completion of work at over 60 Superfund sites across the country, 25 being completed in turnkey fashion or design/build. Over the past three years, ENTACT has opened offices in the Northeast, Southeast, and California. Since inception, ENTACT has completed every project it started, over 1,500, and has never been engaged in a legal dispute with a customer, speaking to the company's emphasis on its core values and culture.

Silver Medal:
Compass Environmental, Inc. for increasing annual revenues from $35 million in 2003 to $105 million in 2006, thereby graduating to the “large firm” category. A substantial part of this growth is attributed to Compass’ demolition services, which have been significantly enhanced over the last year. For example, the City of Port Neches, Texas, hired Compass to remediate contaminated soils and demolish a 35-acre former refinery. Compass also completed the demolition of the former Anaconda Wire and Cable Plant site in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, for Atlantic Richfield Company. The project included the demolition of two major clusters of buildings, totaling approximately 300,000 square feet of former industrial facilities. Compass was able to perform this work, which was highly visible to the community, without any complaints, and the firm received a local commendation for its community-friendly work. The performance on this project also earned Compass BP/ARCO’s Diamond Safety Award for creativity in developing new, safe work practices, and for completing the project without any safety incidents.

Bronze Medal:
ERRG for growing revenues by 360% since 2002. In 2006, ERRG’s revenues increased by 25%, from $22.3 million in 2005 to $28 million in 2006. Although ERRG is only nine years old, the firm listed in Engineering News Record as one of the Top 200 Environmental Firms in the country (No. 174). ERRG was also recognized by ZweigWhite as a Hot 100 Firm (#11), and by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the “Fastest Growing Private Firms” in the San Francisco Area for the third year in a row. The Department of Defense (DOD) selected ERRG for the prestigious Nunn-Perry Award. In addition to ongoing DOD work for the Navy, ERRG marked 2006 with the addition of several significant new federal clients: the Coast Guard, the U.S. Forest Service, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Land Management, the Department of Transportation, the Federal Aeronautics Administration, and the General Services Administration (GSA). In addition, ERRG performed several diverse and noteworthy projects, such as the excavation and shredding of more than one-million tires for the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB), the installation of a multi-million dollar storm drain system at the BKK Landfill for the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the installation of a multi-acre evapo-transpirative cap at the Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, and the completion of a million-dollar soil removal project for the Presidio Trust.

Bronze Medal:
Boyle Engineering Corp. for demonstrating significant revenue and earnings growth in 2006 and for extending geographical reach by acquiring LBFH, Inc., a Florida-based consulting, civil engineering, surveying and mapping firm. Over the past year, Boyle has increased revenue by 61%, 19% coming through organic growth and the remainder through acquisition (the company added California-based Stoddard Engineering, Inc. in 2005). Boyle Engineering’s backlog increased by 29% in 2006, coming off a 23% increase in 2005, and prompting staff growth of more than 34% last year. Earnings growth has been even more impressive, increasing 250% year over year. The acquisition of LBFH added 200 employees and six offices, bringing the firm’s total staff to 650 people at 22 offices in the U.S. Over the past three years, Boyle stock price has increased 200%.

Honorable Mention:
WRS Infrastructure & Environment for strong organic growth, profitability and performance in 2006. The company achieved nearly a 60% increase in contribution margin, an almost 30% increase in revenue and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). The mid-sized civil engineering, remediation, and construction company improved its financial standing with a major focus on excellent customer service and a high quality product. WRS also achieved a new milestone in safety for 2006, reaching 50 months without a lost-time incident. WRS credits the improvements to penetrating new markets and selecting work on a more strategic basis. With a greater emphasis in water resource management and sustainable development, WRS has expanded its portfolio beyond its traditional transportation and environmental remediation projects. New lines of work included Everglades restoration, Tampa Port improvements, and redevelopment projects in Pennsylvania and Florida.

Honorable Mention:
TechLaw for doubling its EPA revenues in 2006 and for achieving a high success rate on bids for EPA contracts. TechLaw multidisciplinary environmental consulting firm serving federal, state, and local clients and employing 160 staff professionals in 15 offices nationwide. Over the past two years, the firm has had a success rate of 67% in bids for EPA contracts, bringing in a backlog of six prime contracts and two subcontracts valued at $135 million last year alone. Wins include contracts for which TechLaw was the incumbent, as well as contracts that take the company into new EPA regions and program areas. For example, from 2000 to 2005, TechLaw was a prime contractor for the Environmental Services Assistance Team (ESAT) contract in Region 10. Last yea, the firm won this contract back along with three additional ESAT contracts in regions 1, 5, and 8. Also, after being a subcontractor in the Superfund Technical Assessment and Response Team (START) program for 10 years, the company won START prime contracts in Regions 3 and 10.

Honorable Mention:
SCS Engineers (SCS) for consistent, 13% annual growth over the past six years. SCS provides engineering, construction and contract operations services to private- and public-sector clients through a network of 40 offices in 17 states. SCS’ sustained has stemmed from planned expansions into high-opportunity geographic markets through acquisitions and the establishment of new offices; broadening services to include more construction and operations contracts; and pushing initiatives in brownfields redevelopment services, federal services, and distributed energy project development. SCS was named the number one solid waste engineering consultant for the third consecutive year by Engineering News-Record (ENR) and was rated as one of the 100 fastest-growing architectural, engineering, planning and environmental consulting firms in the U.S. on the ZweigWhite Hot Firm list. During 2006, two SCS teams were honored by the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA). The Charlotte County, Florida, Solid Waste Management Division Landfill team won a SWANA gold award for excellence. The Interior Removal Specialist of Southern California team won both a SWANA gold award and a SWANA silver award. Last year, SCS also was honored with two prestigious Phoenix Awards, one for the PETCO Park/East Village project in San Diego and one for Chesterfield Square project in Los Angeles.

LARGE FIRMS (>$100 MILLION)

Gold Medal:
The Shaw Group for growing revenues by 46% to $4.8 billion and backlog by more than 35% from $6.7 billion to $9.1 billion. The attributes these increases to growth in the power, chemicals, and federal markets. Environmental regulations—most recently, the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR)—and the rising price of natural gas have increased the need to retrofit coal-fired power plants and to build new, more environmentally friendly plants, while in the chemicals sector, Shaw is implementing technologies designed to reduce or reuse waste chemicals from the ethylene process to avoid discharge into the environment. The federal government requirement for emergency response and design and construction services is driving growth with DOD, FEMA, and EPA. EBJ also recognizes Shaw for its successful deployment of state-of-the-art environmental technologies, such as the Dechlorinating Culture (SDC-9) for treating aquifers contaminated with chlorinated solvents, and the Spent Caustic Pretreat technology, which recovers spent caustic materials, with zero discharge, at petrochemical facilities.

Silver Medal:
ICF International for growth of 70% in 2006 to reach revenues of more than $300 million and for staking out a leading global position as a consultancy providing strategic services designed to help businesses, governments and other parties address their climate change issues in an increasingly “carbon constrained” world. At the end of 2006, ICF was named by Environmental Finance magazine, an international magazine covering environmental markets, investment, and risk management, as a “best advisor” in several areas, based on a survey of more than 900 companies. The firm was named the “best advisory” company for both the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme and the North American greenhouse gas markets, and as a “runner up” best advisor for credit projects associated with compliance with the Kyoto Protocol. ICF has been advising clients in the areas of energy policy and climate-change strategy for approximately two decades and includes among its clients about 60 of the largest companies in the world ranked by market capitalization. This past year, ICF was awarded a contract to manage the new Multilateral Carbon Credit Fund launched by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the European Investment Bank.

Bronze Medal:
Tetra Tech EC, Inc., a unit of Tetra Tech, Inc., for increasing its earnings per share by 240%, revenue by 27%, direct hires by 12%, and backlog by 12% to over $1 billion since January 1, 2006. In addition, Tetra Tech EC has made great strides in expanding into two new market sectors. By leveraging it nationally recognized remediation and environmental construction skills, Tetra Tech EC was able to enter the pure-construction market. In 2006 alone, the unit received 23 contracts valued at more than $150 million for construction projects in Iraq. In the United States, Tetra Tech EC was selected as one of three awardees by the Army Corps of Engineers for the $625-million Philadelphia multiple-award task order contract (MATOC) and the $200-million MATOC 8(a) set-aside. In the second market arena, Tetra Tech EC emerged as a premier provider of alternative-energy developers nationwide, including wind energy. The firm has realized a 144% increase in wind energy contracts since 2005, from $3.6 million to $8.8 million. The cache of wind energy experience now exceeds 100 projects. Tetra Tech EC also expanded internationally with new offices in Australia and Iraq, and it is currently working in over 26 countries around the world. Throughout a yea of increased workload, field hours, and geographically dispersion, Tetra Tech EC achieved recognition for 6-million safe work hours from the National Safety Council.

C&E Firms: NEW PRACTICE AREAS

Kleinfelder for successful, profitable growth in its four-year-old environmental planning practice. Kleinfelder introduced this practice in April 2003 with the intent of diversifying and strengthening the firm’s traditional services and providing additional value to clients. Over its lifetime, the practice has seen double-digit growth in gross revenue and in full-time employees (FTEs), from $1.3 million and 11 FTEs in 2003 to $7.3 million and 54 FTEs in 2006. With a foundation of multi-year, multi-million dollar projects, Kleinfelder anticipates similar profitable growth in 2007 to $12 million and 80 FTEs. Key successes include the following: increased revenue and staff by 60%-plus per year; repeat business and multi-year contracts, especially in the federal, transportation and vineyard/agriculture markets; expanded delivery coast to coast from Portland, Oregon, the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego to Windsor, Connecticut and Tampa, Florida; and the hiring of nationally recognized technical leaders to support existing project demands for fisheries biology, regulatory compliance and permitting, cultural resources management, natural resources, mitigation and restoration planning, and impact assessments (NEPA/CEQA/SEPA).

Golder Associates Inc. for expansion of its office network in the U.S. and its environmental health and safety (EH&S) practice, particularly in the area of industrial hygiene, worldwide. Golder’s U.S. expansion has been largely twofold: growing smaller offices to a sustainable level and adding senior technical experts throughout its 43 offices, including new offices in Greensboro and Raleigh, N.C.; Tallahassee, Fla.; Columbus, Ohio; Duluth, Minn.; Billings, Mont.; Kamuela, Hawaii; Seattle and Spokane, Wash.; and Silver City, N.M. Strategic hires have focused on engineers, scientists and consultants specializing in natural resources, manufacturing, and waste management. EH&S expansion has focused on China (Shanghai), Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa, Australia, Canada, and, in the U.S., Florida and California. Within less than a year, Golder has established itself as a recognizable entity in several Asia-Pacific countries as a competent provider of industrial hygiene services. This includes delivering educational programs and workshops to hundreds of companies in the region, including both multinational and Chinese companies.

Delta Environmental Consultants for the successful launch of a new corporate identity and repositioning in the marketplace. Delta’s re-branding represents an expansion of the consulting services that the company provide to clients to include new practice areas such as corporate social responsibility, benchmarking and information management while enhancing remediation services and strengthening global reach. As a result of this repositioning, Delta gained many large project awards in 2006, and two major, multiyear projects in particular reflect the firm’s sustainability focus. Delta signed a property disposition contract with Hess Corp., a global integrated energy company, that extends through December of 2011 and is valued at $50 million, with annual revenues exceeding $10 million, The project portfolio consists of 550 sites that include retail, terminal, refinery and pipeline sites located in 19 eastern and southeastern states. A second multiyear contract, with Sun Microsystems, utilizes Delta’s IntelligentEHS information management system and involves the staffing of environmental, health and safety (EH&S) management positions at Sun’s high-tech facilities in the U.S., Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia.

ET Environmental for successful penetration of a new and significant market sector. Already recognized in the solid waste sector as an innovator and leader in design/ build of transfer stations, recycling facilities and hauling/maintenance facilities, ET Environmental brought its skills and reputation to the energy sector through a new business platform called ET Energy. ET Environmental says that it has developed project delivery techniques that offer owners creative construction management and owner’s rep services. In less than two years, ET Energy claims to have become a leading provider for the installation of traditional fueling centers for numerous “big box” clients, to have delivered several LNG/CNG facilities, and, over the last year, to have emerged as a leading provider of consulting and construction management services for the landfill gas (LFG) to energy market. In particular, ET Energy is at the forefront of the development of the next generation of LFG-to-pipeline quality gas processing plants, assisting in the technical, financial, and contractual structure of the projects.

CLEAN ENERGY & CONSUMER PRODUCTS

Gold Medal:
Westport Innovations for growing revenues from $80,000 in 2001 to $34.4 million in 2005. Increasing concerns over urban air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions have led to success for this developer of alternative-fuel power technologies and high-performance, fuel-efficient internal combustion engines. According to the company, if you live in a city like San Diego or Los Angeles, the buses you see on the street are probably running on an engine designed and sold by Westport Innovations. Founded in 1996, the firm was originally established to commercialize technology, developed at the University of British Columbia, that uses natural gas as a fuel in diesel engines to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and greenhouse gases (GHG). After a couple of years of developing the technology into something concrete to demonstrate high-performance natural gas engines using a concept called high-pressure direct injection (HPDI), Westport decided to partner with other companies to bring their product to market. The firm’s first partner was Cummins Inc., with which it formed Cummins Westport Inc. Since then, the partners have shipped about 13,000 engines around the world, mostly for buses and refuse vehicles. The partnership’s biggest customers are fleets in California, but Westport and Cummins have also sold to fleets in Beijing and Paris.

Silver Medal:
Evergreen Solar for continued growth and for completing a string of multimillion-dollar orders for its photovoltaic (PV) modules and components, and for commencing construction of its second major production facility in Germany. Through three quarters in 2006, revenues were $70.7 million in 2006 compared to $32.4 million in 2005. In February, Evergreen signed a $100-million contract to provide S.A.G. Solarstrom AG (Freiberg, Germany) with PV modules over the next four years. Within the week, the firm had inked an $88-million, multi-year supply contract to provide PV modules to Vermont-based Global Resource Options, Inc. (GRO). Later in March, Evergreen Solar signed a distribution agreement valued at approximately $125 million to provide PV modules to Donauer Solartechnik, a German-based solar power distributor, over the next four years. Far from done for the year, the firm received an order in July totaling $200 million from SunEdison, LLC for photovoltaic (PV) modules, to be shipped to SunEdison over the next five years. A four-year, $100-million order from Mainstream Energy LLC followed in October.

Bronze Medal:
TerraCycle, a maker of plant foods from organic wastes, for continued growth in revenues during its five years of existence. The firm was started in 2001 by two Princeton students with only $20,000. In 2006, sales will reach $2 million. TerraCycle’s Plant foods are now carried nationwide at big-box retailers such as Target, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Rite-Aid, CVS, ACE Hardware, and Whole Foods Markets. TerraCycle makes OMRI-listed plant foods, the world’s first consumer product to be made from worm excrement and packaged entirely in discarded products—namely, old soda bottles. The manufacturing of the company’s products actually consumes waste instead of producing it. The company collects its soda bottles through a program called the Bottle Brigade, which consists of 1,600 schools and churches nationwide to whom TerraCycle donates 5 cents per bottle collected. At the end of 2005, TerraCycle was awarded Home Depot’s Environmental Stewardship Award for being the most eco-friendly product sold at Home Depot. In 2006, two independent environmental groups—Zerofootprint.com and the Summerhill Group—announced that TerraCycle has “the World’s Most Eco-Friendly Product.” In July 2006, an Inc. magazine cover story named TerraCycle as “The Coolest Little Start-up in America.”

Honorable Mention:
Highland Laboratories for introducing Earth-friendly vitamin bottles to U.S. market, an accomplishment that the company claims as an industry first. Highland Laboratories has been serving the natural products industry exclusively for over 33 years. It is a maker of a dietary supplements with a history of environmentally sensitive business practices, and in June of this year announced that it would begin packaging their supplements in Earth-friendly, corn-based bottles. The bottles use 6% less fossil fuel than petroleum-based plastics. The new biodegradable bottles are a first step in changing how we use our precious and diminishing resources. As part of its commitment to marketing and supplying nutritional products, including dietary supplements, in Earth-friendly packaging, Highland Laboratories pioneered the use of recycled paper and soy ink in its sales literature and catalogs more than a decade ago and today uses recycled paper and soy ink for its product labels. Highland Laboratories holds an Oregon Board of Pharmacy license as a Class 1 pharmaceutical manufacturer with a GMP “A” rating from the Natural Products Association (formerly the National Nutritional Foods Association).

Honorable Mention:
C&A Floorcoverings for successfully replacing traditional diesel used in its commercial boilers with 100% biodiesel. C&A claims to be the first and only carpet manufacturer to date to use biodiesel as an energy source; it began using biodiesel in February 2006, and now 11% of its total energy is from renewable sources. By recycling waste vegetable cooking oils and grease from local restaurants, C&A is able to use a wastestream normally destined for the landfill as a fuel for manufacturing. Not only does using biodiesel as a 100% replacement for fuel oil lessen C&A’s dependence on imported oil, it also reduces the company’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 78%, particulate emissions by 48%, air toxics by 60 to 90%, hydrocarbon emissions by 67%, and sulfate emissions by 100%.

EBJ INDEX STOCK MARKET AWARDS

To be announced

M&A AWARDS

HDR, Inc. (Omaha, Neb.; www.hdrinc.com), for acquiring a total of six firms this year through November. Three of those came in January—Surface Water Resources Inc. (SWRI) and Brown, Vence and Associates, Inc. (BVA), both in California, and Shiner Mosely and Associates Inc. in Texas. SWRI specializes in water resources consulting and engineering, while BVA’s specialty is in solid waste management planning and energy management consulting. Shiner Mosely and Associates specializes in port, marine and coastal planning, engineering and permitting. HDR followed up in May with the acquisition of the architectural and engineering firm Cochran & Wilken, Inc., which employs 45 people at offices in Springfield and Murphysboro, Illinois. HDR describes Cochran & Wilken as a full-service firm with a specialization in natural resources and fisheries management. HDR subsequently completed two more acquisitions outside the environmental field—WHM Transportation Engineering Consultants and Daniel Frankfurt, PC.

EnergySolutions for building a major global player in the nuclear services market through two major deals in quick succession. This past spring , the former Envirocare of Utah, Inc. and BNFL’s U.S. unit BNG America Inc. combined to form EnergySolutions in a transaction valued at about $90 million. Within days of announcing the proposed merger in February, Energy Solution announced another mega-deal—an agreement with Duratek Inc. whereby EnergySolutions would acquire all of Duratek’s outstanding stock for $22 per share in a transaction valued at about $396 million. This fall, EnergySolutions added to its portfolio of services by acquiring Safeguard International Solutions Ltd., a firm the EnergySolutions referred to as the U.K. leader in providing turn-key services for the dispositioning of radioactive materials, including waste, from non-nuclear power generating facilities.

Jones & Stokes for continuing an acquisition strategy launched in 2001 with the objective of growing geographically within the Western States. Target companies have been small firms (10 to 40 employees) that provide services similar to Jones & Stokes’ but in new geographies with new clients. Over the last six years, Jones & Stokes has completed a total of six acquisitions—the first in the company’s 36-year history: Beak Consultants in Oregon; Myra L. Frank & Associates; Campbell Bioconsultants and Mooney & Associates in California; Mobrand Biometrics in Washington; and Thunderbird Wildlife Consultants in Wyoming. Jones & Stokes developed both quantitative and qualitative objectives for integrating each of the acquisitions completed. The qualitative goals were to minimize disruption to the existing operations of both firms. Jones & Stokes assigned integration leaders to be present at the newly acquired firm to work with the employees through the first several months, answering questions and countering the “things are going to be different” reaction. The quantitative goals were specific to each of the acquired firms, but in all cases required an expected future annual operating income of more than twice the firms’ previous best reported operating income on an annual basis. To date, each of the acquisitions is performing at greater than three times their best reported profit level in their history prior to becoming a part of Jones & Stokes, and some are performing even better. In addition, Jones & Stokes’ integration strategies to minimize employee departures has been successful, keeping voluntary turnover in each of its acquired companies below 8%.

Siemens Industrial Solutions and Services (IS&S) Group for making several acquisitions to strengthen its position in the global water industry. In January, IS&S acquired Monosep Corp., a Louisiana-based provider of water treatment systems for the oil and gas industry, and the odor control and disinfection businesses of Houston-based Altivia Corp. The acquired operations generate a combined total of $50 million in revenues annually. In July, IS&S acquired Sernagiotto Technologies S.p.A (Casteggio, Italy), a developer of sludge dewatering and drying technologies, and deal that was followed up in August by the acquisition of Beijing-based CNC Water Technology, a systems integration firm focused exclusively on the water industry. Also during 2006, the Water Technologies business of IS&S and Mekorot, Israel’s national water company, established a strategic partnership to jointly develop and market technologies for water treatment, wastewater treatment and reuse, desalination and facility security.

TECHNOLOGY MERIT AWARDS: REMEDIATION

O’Brien & Gere, an engineering and project delivery firm, for continued development and deployment of innovative technologies and solutions for remediation and pollution control problems. In the area of air pollution control, O’Brien & Gere has developed the AIR DI-Duct Injection Technologies, which injects sorbents into flue gas to control SO2, SO3, mercury, and acid gases at what the company claims is a fraction of the cost of traditional scrubbers. From late 2005 through 2006, O'Brien & Gere performed more than 5,000 hours of Duct Injection demonstrations at facilities across the nation. In addition, the firm’s Vapor Intrusion products and services provide assessment, delineation and effective mitigation of vapor intrusion in indoor environments. With nearly 1,000 Vaprotect Vapor Intrusion Mitigation (VIM) Series mitigation systems in operation, O’Brien & Gere claims to be the industry leader in supplying total, “360°” vapor intrusion resources to industry, consultants, and attorneys nationwide. In the area of soil remediation technology, the firm provides the MeVoS Soil Treatment system, an on-site treatment technology for removing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from soils, eliminating the need for hazardous waste disposal or incineration. For water treatment, O’Brien & Gere has developed the VEVPAR technology, which provides closed-loop groundwater treatment for removing VOCs, matching the cost-effectiveness of air stripping with no air discharge, and the Selector Contact Stabilization (SCS) technology, a patented wastewater treatment process for increasing hydraulic capacity while reducing power consumption and the generation of activated sludge.

AMEC Earth & Environmental for its advancement of an innovative “soil washing” technology that removes lead bullets and fragments from firing ranges. The company touts soil washing as the best range cleanup option for overall environmental stewardship. The technique removes even the very small lead particles, and it produces no secondary wastes for disposal. Furthermore, because it is water-based, it is dust-free and requires no air permits. Also, the need to dump lead-impacted soil in overcrowded landfills is eliminated. The recovered lead is recycled and reused. Similar to panning for gold, this soil-washing technique relies on gravity to do the work, according to AMEC. The soil is first mixed with water and run through screens and classifiers to isolate soil that contains lead particles. Upward water flow then causes density separation in which the lead, being heavier than the soil particles, sinks faster and is trapped while the water and suspended soil flow out. AMEC has used this technique at Fort Dix, N.J., and at the Massachusetts Military Reservation on Cape Cod. It currently is being used at Fort Ruger, located in the crater of the landmark Diamond Head volcano in Hawaii, and at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland.

Environmental Data Solutions Group, LLC (EDSG) for deploying its integrated remediation optimization (iROS) approach to dramatically accelerate non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) recovery from contaminated sites. EDSG applied iROS to a site in Southern California with approximately 4-million gallons of free product covering more than 20 acres. Initially, vacuum-enhanced free product recovery (VEFPR) was implemented as the remedial action, and the VEFPR system was expected to operate for 10 to 15 years, using four O&M technicians. EDSG integrated iROS into the VEFPR system, and preliminary results indicate that the site will be clean in six to nine years, using only one or two technicians. The iROS approach integrates three applications of technology to accelerate a NAPL (light or dense) recovery process. The technologies, developed by EDSG, include: the Continuous Fluid Level Monitoring System (CFLMS), which automatically controls the operation of the well pump based on the real-time measurement of NAPL level in the well to maximize free product recovery; the Project Data Management Information System (PDMIS), which is a data warehouse and query system that allows for storage and visualization of all project data, customized to the needs of the user; and Wireless Field Tools (WFT), which enter field-collected data directly into the PDMIS.

Ivey International Inc. for advances the development of faster, more cost-effective bioremediation technologies. Ivey has developed the Selective Phase Transfer Technology (SPTT) and the Ivey-sol technology to improve the bioavailability of various contaminants to the microorganisms present in soil or water. According to the company, SPTT can be easily adopted for in situ and ex situ applications and can clean up a site 40% to 60% faster than conventional site remediation technologies, as the contaminants are made available to the bacteria. Ivey-sol is a version of SPTT that uses nonionic surface-active agents (SAA) for their application in light and dense non-aqueous phase liquid (LNAPL and DNAPL) remediation of air, soil, and groundwater contaminant systems. The objective of this technology is to make the contaminants available for the bacteria to biodegrade by increasing the hydrolysis. The technology also makes contaminants available for the oxidative reductive treatment by other chemicals. According to Ivey, this proprietary technology could have a major impact in applications that necessitate the removal of petroleum hydrocarbons such as gasoline, fuel oil, and diesel, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) contaminants, chlorinated solvents such as trichloroethane, MTBE and heavy metals from soil, and groundwater and fractured bedrock. Ivey’s work earned it the 2006 Frost & Sullivan Technology Innovation Award for North America in the field of enhanced bioremediation technologies.

TECHNOLOGY MERIT AWARDS: WATER/WASTEWATER

ECOfluid Systems for developing the USBF packaged wastewater treatment system for subdivisions, golf courses, agricultural and industrial projects with flows of less than 2-million gallons per day. In a review of 67 technologies for the on-site treatment of wastewater in California done by the University of California-Davis for the California State Water Resources Control Board, the USBF modular treatment plant was the only system to achieve an A rating (the highest) in all categories of evaluation. An A rating means that USBF achieves less than 10 milligrams per liter (mg/L) for biological oxygen demand, total suspended solids, and total nitrogen; less than 2 mg/L for total phosphorus; and less than 2 mg/L for fecal coliform. ECOfluid provides treatment that meets regulations for reducing nutrients for variable flows. It features a small footprint, costs less to buy and less to operate than sequencing batch reactors or membrane bioreactors, and uses a fraction of the power that most systems require. Based on this study, and the fact the company won this year’s Frost and Sullivan award for Technology Leadership and filed a new patent to advance the USBF technology, ECOfluid was able to expand its distribution network to meet the constant demand for its product.

Alfa Laval for the development and deployment of the Ballast Water Treatment System. The system addresses the problems associated with the disposal of ballast water, which is a problem for regulatory bodies, governments and vessel owners in the United States and throughout the world in the form of the transport of invasive species. Alfa Laval reports that its Ballast Water Treatment System (BWTS) offers a high level of biological effectiveness at a low operational cost with minimal service, operation and maintenance requirements. The system provides efficient removal of unwanted marine organisms without additives or chemicals while reducing manual intervention through effective automated operation. Major components of the BWTS are the Benrad Advanced Oxidation Technology (AOT) unit; a cleaning system; a filter to remove larger organisms and particles; and a complete control system for automatic operation.

Environmental Operating Solutions, Inc. (EOS) for introduction of the MicroC G, the latest in the MicroC series of electron donor products for biological contaminant removal in water and wastewater. Driven by increasingly stringent limits on nitrogen discharge, wastewater treatment plants are looking for safer, less expensive and more environmentally sustainable electron donors for denitrification. Methanol is the current industry-standard chemical used for denitrification, but it is flammable, explosive, toxic and has increased five-fold in price since 2002, according to EOS. MicroC and MicroC G offer an alternative to methanol in treatment plants that are currently denitrifying or in the process of completing denitrification upgrades. Revenues and the number of customers have more than doubled in 2006 and, the company predicts, will continue to grow quickly as increasingly stringent nitrogen limits are implemented and as the company’s products continue to gain market acceptance. EOS has been awarded two patents related to its contaminant removal technologies.

A-Lok Products, Inc., a 35-year-old maker of watertight connectors for wastewater and stormwater containment systems, for the continued deployment of watertight stormwater systems over the past five years. According to A-Lok, pipe-to-manhole connectors stop infiltration of fines, chemicals, pesticides and groundwater, especially from wetlands, into the stormwater system between pipes and concrete structures. They also keep the first storm flush from roads and parking lots in the system so that it can be treated. A-Lok has developed the Z-LOK STM connector to use with all sizes of corrugated HDPE pipe to make a watertight connection. At present, A-Lok is continuing to work on new connector designs to create better watertight connections for septic tanks to protect against leakage into the ground and infiltration of wells and groundwater supplies. A¬-Lok started the Watertight Stormsewer Group (WSSG) with its biggest competitor to promote the value of using connectors versus the old fashioned, unreliable grout and mortar connections. The WSSG also prints the Good Connections newsletter twice a year to promote their philosophy to engineers as well as contractors.

Cardinal Resources, an environmental consulting, engineering, remediation firm, for developing a self-contained, solar-powered water supply system and deploying it in the United States and in several other countries. In 2005 Cardinal Resources began development of the Red Bird System, a solar-powered self-contained system for providing drinking water to over 1,000 people/day from multiple sources. Originally developed for emergencies and developing economies, the Red Bird has found its way into industrial applications in the U.S. and Mexico, with pending projects in Brazil, Haiti and Africa. Cardinal Resources continues to work on the combination of sustainable water supply and wastewater treatment with the development of its low-energy Grey Bird System for wastewater treatment. The first Grey Bird is scheduled for deployment in Brazil in 2007.

TECHNOLOGY MERIT AWARDS: ANALYTICAL

Sensicore for the development of smart sensors and sensor networks that automate water testing, data collection and analysis for both drinking and industrial water applications. According to Sensicore, the WaterPOINT 870 is the first lab-on-chip water profiler, effectively creating an “early warning system” for water quality. The instrument incorporates smart sensors into a handheld device that allow users to “bring the lab to the water source,” rather than require the transport of water samples to the lab. Able to complete 18 measurements in a few minutes, the device enables users to do a comprehensive water profile at every site in less time than it takes to do fewer tests using conventional methods, according to the company. With an optional optical chamber, it can test for 12 additional parameters. The company also provides WaterNOW, an advanced Internet-based tool that analyzes water quality data from multiple sources and allows users to visualize data in real-time, pinpoint problem areas immediately and prepare compliance reports.

MJK North America Inc. for introducing a new electromagnetic flow meter line, a product that the company describes as the only line on the market with on-board data logging. The product provides immediate access to long-term flow data without the use of external SCADA systems, and it includes an on-board flow-rate graphing LCD for immediate imaging of historical flow. Over the past year, MJK has also established new nationwide sales representation channels in Canada and increased the range of MJK's products that are available to the North American market by 237%. The company also introduced a new “breakthrough” product that allows end users, sales channel partners and integrators to make field calibration and custom-level range outputs with off-the-shelf submersible level transmitters, eliminating lead times for custom ranges.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for successfully designing and testing a nanotechnology-based sensor that detects organophosphate (OP) compounds used in insecticides and highly toxic nerve gasses. According to PNNL, current methods for detecting organophosphates are time intensive, expensive, and cannot be performed on site. PNNL’s sensor is composed of enzymes that self-assemble layer by layer onto tiny, hollow carbon tubes. When the sensor encounters the OP compounds, the enzymes slow down, and this reduced activity is transmitted as an electrochemical signal through the carbon nanotubes to an attached electrode. By reading the measurements on the electrode, scientists can determine the concentration of the toxic organophosphates in the contaminated water, soil or air. PNNL says that the sensor is highly sensitive and detects the pesticide paraoxon at concentrations as low as one part per trillion in six minutes. PNNL researchers are using this technology to develop sensors that can tell farm workers, chemical sprayers, soldiers and chemical manufacturers in minutes, rather than of days, if they have been exposed to pesticides.

TECHNOLOGY MERIT AWARDS: CLEAN ENERGY

Dynamotive for demonstrating the commercial viability of using forest and agricultural waste for power generation and heating at its flagship “bio oil” plant in West Lorne, Ontario. The bio oil is produced by flash-heating organic matter for less than two seconds and condensing out the oil and recycling flammable gases in the closed-loop system. The process is greenhouse-gas and carbon neutral and generates about 55% of the heating value of conventional diesel fuel. The company employs 36 people and has a European head office in London, U.K. An additional bio oil production facility is to be built in Ontario in early 2007. At the end of March, 2006, Dynamotive announced that it had licensed a 200 ton-per-day pyrolysis plant with an option for two further ones to a company with extensive operations in Latvia and the Ukraine.

WOW Energies for developing the WOWGen patented heat-recovery power-generation technology and the WOWClean low-temperature air pollution control system. According to the company; up to 20% of the power demand in the United States can be generated using waste heat—the equivalent of reducing oil imports by more than 4 million barrels per day. The WOWGen technology allows companies to generate power with no additional air emissions or fuel costs, conserving non-renewable natural resources. The low temperature exhaust is routed to the WOWClean system, an integrated air pollutant control system that innovatively combines various technologies to remove nitrogen oxides (NOX), sulfur dioxide (SO2), particulate matter and heavy metals. Instead of dispersing pollutants into the air, the pollutants are removed and treated locally, through such methods as the recycling/reclamation of heavy metals (vanadium, copper, etc.) or the generation of other beneficial by-products, such as fertilizer. Both technologies are compact systems based on off-the shelf components.

Biomass Gas & Electric, LLC (BG&E) for the development of electric power plants utilizing a number of patented renewable processes. BG&E has the rights to utilize the SilvaGas process through an operating license agreement with FERCO, the process developer. The SilvaGas process generates clean, medium-Btu gas through the gasification of biomass feedstocks. This gas can be substituted directly for natural gas in most appliances, including conventional and advanced gas turbines. The gasification process converts biomass to natural gas in an oxygen-fee superheated gasification chamber. Viable biomass feedstocks include pulp and residue, agricultural by-products, construction and demolition debris, wood waste, and crops. BG&E claims to have been involved in the only U.S. operating biomass gasification demonstration plant, located in Vermont. Another contracted plant in Forsyth County, Georgia, will provide several megawatts (MW) of environmentally friendly electricity form biomass waste that would ordinarily be landfilled. Another plant approved in Florida in 2006 to provide natural gas and 38 MW of electricity to the city of Tallahassee. BG&E will also provide $2 million of funding for sustainable energy research at Florida State University.

TECHNOLOGY MERIT: WASTE MANAGEMENT

Sanitec Industries, Inc. for optimizing and bringing to market patented technology for sterilizing medical and pathological wastes with zero emissions. Sanitec currently processes millions of pounds of infectious wastes every year at facilities around the country and in several foreign countries. Unlike incineration and autoclaves, which merely transform biohazard material into other dangerous waste products, such as dioxin, Sanitec’s systems are self-contained disposal units that eliminate bacterial and viral pathogens. In addition to being certified as zero-emission devices, the systems significantly reduce the environmental impact of medical waste by reducing the volume of the landfill-bound material by up to 80%. Sanitec touts its waste processing units as invaluable not only for the medical waste industry but also for homeland security, particularly in the event of a bird flu outbreak. In early 2006, EPA and the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection endorsed the Sanitec systems for the treatment of bird carcasses in the event of an Avian Flu outbreak at a poultry plant. Sanitec is rapidly expanding its market presence both home and abroad and is vying to become the market leader in safe and environmental friendly medical waste disposal.

PROJECT MERIT AWARDS

The Louis Berger Group, Inc. for its role as the prime contractor for the Rehabilitation of Economic Facilities and Services (REFS) Program, which is a $730-million initiative dedicated to the rebuilding of the nation of Afghanistan. As the prime contractor, The Louis Berger Group was responsible for restoring and, in some cases, providing basic infrastructure foundations for roads, power/energy, dams/irrigation and schools/clinics. Besides the challenges that accompany a project with such a broad engineering range and magnitude, the secular violence and high-threat environment of Afghanistan have made the successful implementation more noteworthy. With the highest density of landmines of any nation in the world, drug traffickers, rival warlords and resurgent Taliban factions, security was a particular concern and priority for the program. The terrain is exceptionally harsh and the climatic extremes wide, and the nation is among the poorest, least educated and most underdeveloped in the world. Expatriate workers trained the local workforce and made use of Afghan subcontractors, generating employment and providing necessary experience for the future. The requisite de-mining efforts and security made a safer environment for local citizens. The capacity and infrastructure development provided basic necessities of water, electricity and health care to more than just the urban population. This program represents a remarkable step forward towards an economically independent and self-sufficient Afghanistan.

Groundwater & Environmental Services, Inc. (GES) for deploying an innovative remediation approach while allowing development to proceed at one of the world’s largest brownfield redevelopment sites. GES was contracted by a government-owned hotel corporation in a Caribbean island nation to provide environmental assessment and remediation services in support of the cleanup and redevelopment project. Managed through GES’s Innovative Remedial Systems Program (IRSP), the project is being implemented in three phases to coordinate with the construction of a new $2-billion resort area. GES is remediating a nine-acre LNAPL plume resulting from a release of over 30,000 gallons of diesel fuel. The remediation system was designed to aggressively remediate 37% of the plume in the first nine months of operation to facilitate the resort’s development. Site-specific cleanup standards were developed based on future residential use of the property and included risk-based soil, water, and product cleanup values as well as a product mobility analysis. The innovative remediation system consists of in situ chemical oxidation via ozone injection and eight large recovery/re-injection trenches to re-circulate up to 2,000 gallons of water and surfactant. Large slurry or containment walls prevent the migration of contaminants from untreated areas into completed locations. An advanced remote monitoring system allows engineers in Pennsylvania to monitor and adjust system equipment to optimize system performance.

Weston Solutions, Inc. for an innovative partnership with a telecommunications equipment maker that engaged in an integrated remediation and redevelopment project to realize the full property value of the 56-acre Sturbridge Business Park in Sturbridge, Mass. Under this arrangement, Weston purchased the property, cleaned up the residual contamination, and reached environmental closure seven years ahead of schedule. As part of the redevelopment deal, Weston assumed environmental liability for the existing contamination at the site, which, paired with a risk-based closure plan, enabled the client to permanently shed its financial, liability, and regulatory obligations. The redevelopment strategy allowed for the “re-tenanting” of the existing buildings, further enhancing the value of the site. The value-sharing partnership provides Weston with a share of the remedial cost savings and the ultimate upside value of the redeveloped property. Weston now manages the property, working closely with community and business stakeholders to ensure that future redevelopment creates the greatest value for the site.

Terratherm for completing the largest in situ thermal remediation project at a wood treatment site to residential cleanup standards. The site was a former utility pole treatment facility operated by Southern California Edison (SCE) 1922 to 1957. The achievement of stringent remedial goals means that the property is not subject to land use restrictions, allowing for all redevelopment opportunities, including residential housing. Unrestricted residential land use at a facility of this type had never previously been achieved with an in situ remediation method, according to Terratherm. The only other remediation alternative deemed capable of achieving the unrestricted land use requirement was soil excavation followed by off-site incineration. A feasibility study led to the selection of Terratherm’s ISTD technology, which utilizes the simultaneous application of thermal conduction heating and vacuum to treat contaminated soil without excavation. The applied heat volatilizes organic contaminants within the soil, enabling them to be carried in the vapor stream toward heater-vacuum wells. By using the ISTD technology rather than excavation, the client saved approximately $12 million. Approximately 16,500 cubic yards of predominantly silty soil was treated to a maximum depth of 105 feet.

Tetra Tech for completing an environmental assessment (EA) for a privately funded commercial space launch site in West Texas, the first-ever commercial applicant for a launch site operating license. Tetra Tech’s client was Blue Origin, a company founded and financed by Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com. Blue Origin originally approached Tetra Tech because of the firm’s successful preparation of an EA for the Kodiak Launch Complex on Kodiak Island, AK in 1996. Tetra Tech was awarded the contract with Blue Origin in March 2005; the Draft EA was issued in June 2006, and the final EA in August 2006. Blue Origin received its FAA permit in September 2006. Successful completion of the Blue Origin EA has already paid dividends to Tetra Tech, in the form of a recently awarded the contract to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Southwest Regional Spaceport (Spaceport America) in southern New Mexico. Spaceport America is the headquarters of Virgin Galactic, the space tourism company founded by Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Atlantic.

Michael Brandman Associates (MBA), an environmental planning services firm, for its role in addressing air-quality problems associated with commercial development in the City of San Bernardino. The city had suspended a grading permit for the development of a new Lowe’s center because of concerns over dust, vibration, and noise that had been raised by a neighboring medical facility. The complainant was also concerned that large trucks would interfere with the operation of the medical facility’s magnetic imaging (MRI) machine. After carefully evaluating the complaint and planned construction practices, Michael Hendrix, manager of MBA’s Air Quality and Noise Assessment Section, recommended an innovative solution: use only smaller, rubber-wheeled equipment near the facility, and construct a retaining wall using auger-driven pilings rather than a poured foundation and pile-driving. Under a separate initiative for the city, Hendrix also developed an Air Quality Mitigation and Fugitive Dust Control Plan to show how construction emissions would be closely monitored to assure compliance with South Coast Air Quality Management District standards. According to MBA, these plans went well beyond standard practices and helped find a creative solution to a seemingly unsolvable problem.

Massin Consulting Services, LLC (MCS), a woman-owned business focused on strategic environmental management, ecological stewardship, and sustainable development services, for assisting the Port of Houston Authority (PHA) in developing a program to cost-effectively reduce the amount of waste materials generated from shipping operations. MCS conducted a waste evaluation at the PHA’s Turning Basin Terminal (TBT) and worked with the port’s Environmental Affairs Department (EAD) in evaluating disposal options for the waste materials under consideration, which included dunnage (solid wood packing material used in shipping steel), nylon straps and metal bands—wastes that are typically landfilled. MCS also provided project management services associated with the development of an Environmental Sustainability Matrix, which is designed to capture costs and benefits of select environmental projects.

EA Engineering & Science for completing six “biogas” recovery projects. EA’s first biogas project was in response to a Notice of Violation (NOV) from the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) emissions from anaerobic lagoons treating wastewater at a slaughterhouse. The NOV carried a potential $10,000/day fine. EA designed an HDPE floating-cover system to capture biogas, which is sent through a pipeline to the plant, where it is used as fuel, replacing methane purchased from a natural gas provider. This system eliminates the release of more than 200,000 tons of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases annually and H2S emissions. Since that project, EA has completed five similar biogas projects, involving the removal of H2S gas using caustic chemical scrubbers or iron sponge treatment. The average pay-back period for these biogas projects is 13 months, and the annual value to the client ranges from several hundred thousand dollars to nearly $2 million.

Thermal Energy International Inc., a provider of custom solutions in the areas of energy and emission reduction and bioenergy, for the first-time deployment of its FLU-ACE waste heat recovery technology in the pulp and paper industry. Contracted by Johnson Controls Inc., Thermal Energy designed and installed the FLU-ACE system at Minas Basin Pulp and Power Co. in Nova Scotia to recover waste heat from the exhaust of a large paper machine in the form of condensed hot water at 145ºF. The heat was reused to preheat paper-machine water streams, building heat and boiler feed water. The project reduced Minas Basin’s consumption of oil by more than 20%, with commensurate reduction in greenhouse gases and other emissions. The system generates energy savings of approximately $1 million a year and has a payback of just over two years. This project provides Minas Basin Pulp and Power with significant reductions in the cost of production of paper, reduced energy costs and emissions and a potential source of emission credits. The project was largely responsible for Thermal Energy’s attainment of record revenues of $2.85 million for 2006.

BUSINESS ACHIEVEMENT: ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION

Gold Medal:
Enviance for continuing its string of record-breaking increases in annual revenues with 150% growth during 2006 over 2005 figures. In addition, the number of customers in 2006 has grown by 135% over the number of customers in 2005, with more than 50% of Enviance clients counted among the Fortune 500. Enviance’s Software as a Service (SaaS) approach enables the company to determine, at any given time, how many active users are in the system. Now with over 5,000 active users in 37 countries, Enviance boasts many outstanding achievements in 2006, including the following: the addition of William K. Reilly, former EPA administrator current board member of DuPont, ConocoPhillips and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, to Enviance’s board of directors; the introduction of citations and permit management functionality, which Enviance seamlessly upgraded to all users systems at the same time overnight; the launch of the new Alliance reseller program to environmental engineering and consulting firms. Current value-added partners include ARCADIS, Clover Leaf, CTI & Associates, Dixon Environmental, Earth Tech, Field Support Services, Inc., Horne International, Malcolm Pirnie, PBS&J, Shaw Environmental, Stanley Consultants and Weston Solutions.

Silver Medal:
Intelex Technologies Inc., a provider of environmental performance management systems software, for completing its fourth consecutive year of greater than 50% revenue growth. The firm has grown from a staff of seven in 2002 to a staff of 36 today, and it plans to grow to approximately 60 employees by the end of its current fiscal year. The firm initially released its web platform in June of 2000 and currently offers over 100 integrated solutions for environmental management ranging from incident reporting to waste management to enterprise-wide document control. Intelex leverages Web 2.0 technology to enable customers to combine, configure, import or build the custom EH&S solution that is right for them. The firm also offers structured systems to manage ISO 14001 conformance and regulatory compliance. Intelex has built a team of EHS specialists dedicated to advancing the field of environmental information management, one client at a time, and serves more than 200 customers worldwide, including Subaru, Mazda, Cigna, Terminix, Sarah Lee, Siemens, Raytheon, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Airgas, Estee Lauder, De Beers, BFI, Devon Energy and British Petroleum.

IT MERIT AWARDS

Locus Technologies for continuing the development of its EIM software, a package that allows companies to upload and view environmental information pertaining to their sites and facilities—exclusively over the web—using an on-demand model (i.e., “Software as a Service”). During 2006, Locus added portal infrastructure through Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), which allows users to integrate EIM’s web-based applications to any other application. In effect, the company says, this added capability makes EIM the “Yahoo” of the environmental world. Locus also expanded EIM to work with the popular Google maps. A user can now add overlays of environmental information to a Google map and display shadowed “info windows.” The result is a Google map mashup, a web application that seamlessly combines EIM content from more than one source into an integrated presentation. Using this mashup, EIM provides a data box listing the chemical concentration in groundwater, borehole information, and other relevant environmental information associated with location. Customers selecting the EIM package this past year include ExxonMobil, Shell Oil, Northrup Grumman and Texas Instruments.

Environmental Data Resources (EDR) for the introduction this past October of EDR OnDemand. The first service of its kind, according to EDR, OnDemand provides corporations and attorneys with instant access to more than 800 environmental databases. With OnDemand, attorneys and corporate professionals can complete environmental research that used to take days in only a matter of minutes. The online, subscription service allows real-time aggregation and access to environmental information from more than 800 federal, state, local and tribal sources. Law firms and corporations conduct environmental research for many reasons, and the process has traditionally been time-intensive, inexact and costly. With OnDemand, data can be collected in minutes, and reports can be customized so that the reviewer obtain only the data that is absolutely necessary. According to EDR, clients can rely on EDR OnDemand as a comprehensive, single source of information for their environmental research needs. The product ultimately helps them gain control of the research process while significantly reducing time and cost.

Pavilion Technologies for developing the Pavilion8 Real-time Environmental Management (REM) application, a package that enables “active compliance” through minute-to-minute emissions performance monitoring, compliance reporting and calculation. As manufacturers are forced to comply with increasingly stringent governmental emissions regulations, they seek to reduce compliance complexities, costs and risks while capitalizing on emissions trading programs. According to the company, REM addresses this problem by offering a new class of environmental compliance and reporting application. Based on the Pavilion8 software platform, REM provides a role-specific, browser-based interface that offers 1-minute, 15-minute and 1-hour calculations on hundreds of emissions sources. To better manage emissions performance, users can run on-demand reports and replay historical emissions performance. Companies like BP, Chevron Phillips Chemical Co., EQUATE Petrochemicals Co., NOVA Chemicals, Sterling Chemicals and TOTAL Petrochemicals use REM in the United States, the Middle East and Europe to meet NOX, HRVOC and CO2 real-time compliance and trading requirements.

Dixon Environmental for expanding subscribers for its MON Resource Center (MRC), and for continued successful deployment of its MONITOR software. The MON Resource Center (www.monrule.com)is a web-based facility that provides organic chemical manufacturers with industry “best practices” for implementing compliance with, the Miscellaneous Organic NESHAP, or the “MON rule” (CFR Part 63, Subpart FFFF)—the only subscription-based website focused on compliance with a specific regulation, according to the company. By “web-enabling” the MON compliance guide, rule summaries, flow diagrams, templates, and illustrations are always up to date and accessible in one convenient location. In addition, interactive and time saving features are incorporated including searchable information and hyperlinks to additional resources. As of the end of 2006, the MRC had more than 30 subscribers at over 20 chemical production facilities. The MONITOR package, powered by Enviance, provides companies such as GE, Procter & Gamble, Syngenta Crop Protection and others with an organized compliance management system that reduces the time and effort spent on MACT, incident/deviation reporting, Title V compliance and more. Typical results from MONITOR include fewer violations, productivity improvements, and the preservation of institutional knowledge. The company says that MONITOR’s subscribers—over 140 users as seven different chemical companies—should expect to see a payback within one to years.

3E for the successful introduction and expansion in 2006 of information technology-based solutions to problems associated with emergency response and homeland security. Recent homeland security concerns regarding hazardous materials have emphasized the importance of properly managing products to increase safety and reduce risk. To address these concerns, 3E introduced a global version of 3E Online-MSDS, the company’s Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) management system. In addition, 3E’s HazMat Mission Control Center, a “24/7/365” facility designed support to callers requiring an immediate response in emergency situations, has grown to the point where it fields nearly 10,000 calls per week pertaining to a variety of issues, including natural disasters and chemical spills. 3E reports that it has thousands of customers around the globe and has tripled its revenue since 2004.

Terradex for developing a map of 200,000 of the nation’s contaminated sites for retrieval through Google Earth. The map provides information allowing the public to identify nearby contaminated sites, and the excavator or contractor to discover potential hazards, and consultants to conduct due diligence. The environmental sites are aggregated from various state and federal sources and are seamlessly displayed across state borders. Colored icons illuminate the status of the contaminated site—red for cleanup not complete, yellow for sites with institutional controls, and green for sites where cleanup is complete. Basic information about each site is displayed with one or more URLs to the applicable regulatory agency listings. In addition to mapping contaminated sites, Terradex has created a layer of the global warming impact of 30,000 United States cities. Terradex is also in the process of building a multi-media environmental repository on Google Earth.

EBJ INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS

ERM for 10% growth in its global business from $425.4 million to $474.42 million for the year ending March 2006—the ninth consecutive year of growth—and for innovation and exemplary volunteer service in support of sustainability and economic recovery and development. With 120 offices in 40 countries, ERM has most recently added offices in Abu Dhabi, Russia and New Zealand and continues to have a major presence in nations boasting the most exciting rates of economic growth, such as Brazil, India and China. As an example of its high-level, policy-oriented work in the international arena, ERM is sponsoring China’s first award for innovation in the field of environmental protection. Established by the Chinese Society of Environmental Science and backed by the Chinese State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), these awards aim to disseminate scientific knowledge for environmental protection, improve public awareness and participation in helping to protect the environment, and recognize environmentally friendly products and lifestyles. In the area of volunteer service, through its ERM Foundation—a non-profit organization established to allow staff to make personal and financial contributions to environmental projects around the world—and in cooperation with Rotary International, ERM has been raising funds to support sustainable rehabilitation and reconstruction projects in the South-Asia region affected by the tsunami of December 2004, the deadliest in recorded history.

Inogen Environmental Alliance for continuing its global expansion continues through the addition of a new associate, bringing the total number of associates to 14, and by adding ten new members to the GlobalNetEHS network. With these additions, Inogen now has full geographic coverage, including Australia, which allows them to coordinate new worldwide programs for Coca-Cola, Sun Microsystems and W.R. Grace. In 2006, Inogen implemented two new initiatives: Their newly developed global health and safety management system was implemented for use by all associates, allowing them to access and operate the global safety system as a standard for deployment. In addition, Inogen and its U.K. associate, Delta-Simons, conducted a seminar on global environmental due diligence attended by fund managers, property specialists and corporate governance specialists responsible for global property investment. The seminar highlighted the global due diligence web-based tool Inogen has developed as part of its capability offerings. Inogen’s WorldView conferences continue to expand, with two created and hosted for leaders of multinational organizations during 2006. one in Amsterdam and one in Tokyo. As of the end of 2006, Inogen has 140 offices worldwide and employs more than 4,500 professionals.

ENVIRON for the successful expansion of The ADVENT Group’s business following the 2005 merger with the group. A specialist in addressing complex industrial wastewater issues, Advent had been based principally in the United States, while ENVIRON had a proven global reach but lacked expertise in the industrial wastewater area. The success of the combination on global markets is demonstrated by the growth of ADVENT-ENVIRON’s revenues and operating margins. In 2004, ADVENT net revenues (pre-merger) totaled $3.9 million, while in 2005 ADVENT-ENVIRON net revenues (the year of the merger) reached $5.7 million. During 2006, ADVENT-ENVIRON estimated revenues are $10.4 million, and the forecast for 2007 is $12.3 million. This growth was accompanied by a 70% increase in operating margins.

Bio-Reaction Industries for expanding its operations into Asia with the execution of two partnership agreements allowing sales and distribution into mainland China, Taiwan, Hong-Kong, and Japan. These partnership ventures will allow the company to service a rapidly expanding market with significant air emissions needs. The rapidly expanding Asian economies, particularly in China, are demonstrating significantly elevated demand for environmentally friendly, sustainable solutions for industrial process and odor vents. Bio-Reaction has been working closely with international partners for almost two years to establish the proper channels, both distribution and marketing, to bring its leading bio-oxidation technology to this underserved market. The culmination of these contracts is a critical turning point in Bio-Reaction’s success as a business and a global market leader in biofiltration technology. Through continuous product improvement and sales channel expansion, Bio-Reaction has also grown its domestic industrial market with awarded contracts in the wood products, automotive manufacturing, and chemical processing sectors.

ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION AWARDS

Holguin Fahan & Associates (HFA) for the overhaul of its business model in a way that has allowed the company to survive and remain profitable in one of the most competitive niches of the environmental industry—the leaking underground fuel tank market. Whereas many other companies in this niche have had to take much reduced margins or totally withdraw from the market, HFA retained high profitability by restructuring three basic business components: behavior-based incentives to induce HFA managers to be more profitable and its employees to work more safely and cost-effectively; business process refinement, which involved the automation of basic business processes and the elimination of significant overhead labor; and product standardization and employee development, which involved the definition and standardization of HFA work products, according to Six Sigma Light standards, to simplify production, and the training of personnel in work methods leading to dramatically reduced production time and a higher-quality product.

ENSR for the establishment of “ENSR University.” As part of ENSR’s culture of “employee engagement” for building a learning environment in which employees can grow and achieve their professional goals, ENSR has committed the necessary resources to be a “best-in-class” learning company through increased training budgets and the launch of ENSR University. The university is under the direction of a new director of organizational development and is primarily taught by senior staff. “ENSR-U” offers more than 30 courses on project management, health and safety, leadership, business skills, employment law, and sales skills. The program is supported by an on-line registration and content management portal. ENSR also has an internal technology transfer program that provides technical training and mentoring to staff. Because training contributes greatly to job satisfaction and the bottom line, ENSR synchronizes individual and corporate training objectives with goals for company growth and annual employee development plans. In 2006, ENSR University delivered 85-plus workshops to staff via classroom, webinar, and on-line training venues. Employees dedicated over 18,000 hours to training and other development activities. With its success in building an engaged workforce through training and development, is participating in an initiative with its parent company, AECOM, to expand best practices throughout its 17 operating companies.

EBJ PUBLIC-SECTOR/NON-PROFIT MERIT AWARDS

The Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) for facilitating the growth of a new U.S. industry to support carpet recycling. CARE is a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to the development of market-based solutions for the diversion of post-consumer carpet from landfills. In 2005, CARE activities helped to generate a 108% increase in recycling of old carpet. A total of 225 million pounds of carpet materials was recycled, and in 2006, that number is expected to double to more than 425 million pounds. Since its inception in January 2002, CARE has recorded the diversion of over three quarters of a billion pounds of old carpet from U.S. landfills. In the fall of 2005 there were approximately 12 recycle centers in the United States; in the fall of 2006 that number is almost 27 and climbing. In addition, CARE has added 18 new sponsors in 2006 alone.

The Sioux Falls Regional Sanitary Landfill for its continuous upgrade and expansion to ensure state-of-the-art operation and comprehensive service to the public. Under a permit modification approved by the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in April 2005, several upgrades were undertaken, including the expansion of the active area for both municipal solid waste (MSW) and construction and demolition waste (C&D), the addition of a combined landfill gas (LFG) and leachate extraction system within the active area, and the treatment and disposal of petroleum-contaminated soils directly into the lined landfill without being land applied. New permit modifications, when approved, would authorize several additional changes including the following: expansion of the leachate and LFG extraction system; construction of a new cell to allow potential leachate circulation or bioreactor capability; completion of an LFG-to-energy feasibility study; construction of a nine-acre compost pad and customer drop-off area for self-haul customers to drop off compost, C&D waste, electronic products, tires and appliances.

Between October and December of 2006, EBJ solicited the environmental industry via email, website and word-of-mouth for nominations for the EBJ Business Achievement Awards. Nominations were accepted in 200-word essays in either specific or unspecified categories. Categories or size designations may be altered depending on the volume of nominations or of the number of worthy recipients. The 2006 EBJ awards were determined by a committee of EBJ staff and EBJ editorial advisory board members. The 2006 EBJ awards will be presented in a special ceremony at EBJ's Environmental Industry Summit IV in Coronado, Calif. on the evening of February 28, 2007. The Environmental Industry Summit is an annual three-day event hosted by EBJ from February 28 thru March 2, 2007 and award recipients are invited to attend to receive their award.

Congratulations to the 2006 winners and EBJ encourages all interested companies to participate next year.
Awards disclaimer: Company audits were not conducted to verify information or claims submitted with nominations.