C & D waste recycling trainees are accredited

Thirty-five professionals completed WasteCap Wisconsin’s public training program in Oconomowoc making them among the state’s first trained professionals in construction and demolition waste management and recycling.

The public training is the first of its kind in Wisconsin to train professionals in the construction, demolition and waste management industries the skills needed to develop, manage, monitor, document and promote successful construction and demolition debris recycling programs.

As the industry moves toward a trend in sustainable development, WasteCap’s program was created to help professionals learn about opportunities that will allow them to meet reuse and recycling requirements while reducing disposal costs. Jobsite waste reduction, reuse and recycling allows contractors and owners to use project funds for their projects rather than for waste disposal. Contractors who know how to recycle will be at a market advantage with the advent of the sustainable movement marked by the Governor’s mandate for “green” building on state projects, Madison and Milwaukee’s Green programs, and the interest in LEED certified projects throughout the state.

Participants who successfully completed the training program earned three-year WasteCap Accreditation as Professionals in Construction and Demolition Waste Management and Recycling.

WasteCap received a grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2004 to develop a comprehensive training program and toolkit. As a pilot project in 2005, the training program was rolled out and tested at three sponsor sites, J.H. Findorff & Sons, Oscar J. Boldt Construction and The Jansen Group. In 2006, the EPA and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources are providing additional funding to test the impact of the training and establish online documentation of recycling results.