Johnson Controls, the industry leader in automotive lead acid battery recycling, was honored for a different kind of recycling at one of its battery recycling plants – saving water.
Johnson Controls' first battery U.S. recycling plant located in Florence, S.C. was honored at the American Academy of Environmental Engineers (AAEE) Awards Luncheon with the grand prize in Industrial Treatment and the W. Wesley Eckenfelder, Jr. Industrial Waste Management Medal for its onsite integrated storm water and wastewater treatment facility.
"Sustainability is a core value of Johnson Controls and the team is proud to be recognized for our efforts to ensure the protection of the Great Pee Dee River and the city of Florence," said Tim Lafond , environmental engineering risk management director, Johnson Controls Power Solutions.
Johnson Controls partnered with CDM Smith, which designed and built the treatment facility, to ensure it protected the community, the environment and allowed for water reuse with reduced dependence on the municipal water supply.
"Our state-of-the-art facility supports our company's commitment to the environments where we work and live," said Bruce Beach , operations vice president, Components, Johnson Controls Power Solutions.
The environmentally friendly facility treats wastewater, generated by the recycling center, to meet permit limits for safe discharge to the city sewer system. The design meets the unique zero discharge requirement by collecting storm water from facility roofs, equipment and pavement and holding it in a 2.3 million-gallon impoundment where it is reused to supply the plant's process water needs. It was built to contain water from a 100-year storm event. To date, 7,000,000 gallons of water have been conserved.
The Florence Recycling Center, which opened in September 2012, is the first facility of its kind to be granted an air permit in more than 20 years, and features world-class environmental controls through a range of advanced and proven technologies.
Source: http://www.johnsoncontrols.com/