National Demolition Association presents environmental awards

The National Demolition Association (NDA) presented Environmental Excellence Awards to 11 companies which have performed demolition projects that have had a significant positive impact on the quality of life in the United States and Canada.

“We created the awards program to recognize NDA member companies which are true leaders in environmental stewardship, a key goal of the NDA’s mission,” said Michael R. Taylor, executive director of the NDA.

Several of the winning projects, which were honored at the National Demolition Association Annual Convention in Las Vegas in March, are:

Project: City of Lights Casino Removal – Alpine Demolition Services, LLC, Batavia, Illinois. Alpine Demolition Services removed a casino boat in Illinois that was catching river debris and silt. Alpine had the casino moved by a truck able tug to a suitable area for interior demolition, removal of all oils, fuel, and Freon. The casino structure was removed to the top of the existing barge. The engines and generators were salvaged for reuse and the majority of the boat’s structure was recycled. The previous staging area for the casino will be developed for a park.

Project: Industrial Brownhoist Site –Bierlein Companies, Inc., Midland, Michigan. Bierlein Cos. abated the environmental hazards including asbestos, 6,000 tons of contaminated soil, and 50,000 gallons of impacted water from the 136 year old Industrial Brownhoist site in Bay City, Michigan. The removal of the structure in partnership with the City of Bay City will produce remarkable marketable waterfront property, nearly one half mile of frontage, along the Saginaw River two miles from Lake Huron.

Project: Ohio State University Medical Facilities – B&B Wrecking and Excavating, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. As part of a $1 billion development program at Ohio State’s Medical Campus, B&B Wrecking & Excavating removed Means Hall, a former tuberculosis hospital, an MRI building, with salvage of the MRI and several connecting halls while preserving existing underground pedestrian tunnels with live utilities and communication. The project required rigid dust monitoring and recycling of all concrete, metal, and clean fill materials.

Project: Duke Energy – Environmental Holdings Group, LLC, Charlotte, North Carolina. Partnered with Duke Energy, Environmental Holdings Group launched an innovative approach to restore the natural resources and reduce the environmental footprint at three Duke Energy locations – the Lee Nuclear Site, Thorpe Hydro Plant, and Nantahala Operations Center. The effort involved relocating 23 residential homes and remediating and demolishing more than 90 other residential structures with the objective of restoring the land back to its natural state. The demolition focused on maximizing the recovery and reuse of the buildings’ components while reducing the project’s carbon footprint by decreasing waste, emissions, and fuel consumption as the need to transport waste offsite was minimized.