SPONSORED CONTENT
recognized companies from around the world that are exploring the most
innovative ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Among them:
■ CAMBRIAN INNOVATION—This Watertown, Mass.–based company’s
EcoVolt technology treats wastewater contaminated by industrial
processes. It not only turns it into clean water but also produces biogas
that can be used to generate clean energy. The company has nine
plants across the United States that have treated an estimated 300
million liters of wastewater.
■ LEHIGH TECHNOLOGIES—The company, based in Atlanta, takes
old tires and other rubber waste and turns it into micronized rubber
powder. This powder can then be used in a variety of applications,
including asphalt and construction materials.
■ ENERKEM—This Canadian company does amazing things with trash.
Its technology extracts the carbon from trash that can’t be recycled.
It then turns the carbon into a gas that can be used to make biofuels
like methanol and ethanol, in addition to chemicals that can be used in
thousands of everyday products.MINIMIZING WASTE
But it’s not only these newer companies that are forging a more sustainable
path. JUST Capital, a nonprofit research organization, recently surveyed a
wide demographic of Americans and found that environmental impact is
one of the top concerns when it comes to corporate behavior. It then looked
at more than 800 companies that are part of the Russell 1000 index and
identified a handful that stand above the rest for their recycling efforts and
environmental stewardship.
Among them: cosmetics giant Estée Lauder. The company’s Global
Environmental and Safety team has developed a strong record of
minimizing waste. Since 2003, the company’s 23 owned manufacturing
and distribution facilities have sent zero waste to landfills, and any waste
that cannot be recycled is incinerated and converted to energy. At its
industrial sites, the company achieved a recycling rate of 88.5%, and its
goal is to reach 90% in the years ahead.
These companies are moving the needle by significantly reducing
the amount of waste they produce and recycling whatever else they can.
But perhaps just as importantly, they are showing other companies that
sustainability and good business are not mutually exclusive. They can work
hand in hand and lead to a smaller environmental impact and a healthier
planet for all. ■The Great Pacifi c Garbage
Patch now contains roughly
1.8 TRILLION pieces of plastic
fl oating around in an area
about twice the size of Texas.
12 billion
metric tons of waste are
expected to be in landfi lls
or our oceans by 2050.
Nearly 80% of the 6.3 billion
metric tons of waste produced
since the invention of plastic
has piled up in landfi lls.