DES MOINES – Ten Iowa businesses have teamed with the Iowa DNR’s Pollution Prevention (P2) Intern Program this summer to increase the efficiency of their operations and reduce associated costs.
Upper-level engineering students work on-site at their assigned company to conduct in-depth assessments, analyze data, research pollution prevention strategies, and provide calculated recommendations. Companies utilize the data to make informed decisions and drive implementations that will help meet their environmental performance goals.
Pollution Prevention or “P2” is the process of going back up the pipe to identify the root cause of inefficiency and applying source-reduction strategies to reduce or eliminate waste in a process or system,” says Jeff Fiagle, Team Lead for the DNR’s P2 Services team. Technical advisers with the P2 Intern Program provide training and oversight to the interns seeking long-term solutions for the host companies to improve environmental performance and bolster profits.
Since 2001, more than 200 Iowa companies, hospitals, universities, and government agencies have teamed with the P2 Intern Program, accumulating more than $114.5 million in savings from using resources more efficiently and improving environmental performance.
Environmental benefits achieved include the reduction of:
- 9 billion gallons of water
- 266,777 tons of solid waste
- 10,139 tons of hazardous waste
- 510 million kilowatt hours of electricity
- 23 million therms of energy.
Companies participating in the 2023 P2 Intern Program include (listed alphabetically by town):
Charles City: Trelleborg Wheel Systems America
Des Moines: Anderson Erickson Dairy
Des Moines: Dee Zee, Inc.
Eddyville: Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition North America, Inc.
Fort Dodge: CJ Bio America
Grimes: National Carwash Solutions
Marshalltown: JBS USA, LLC
Nevada: Burke Marketing Corporation – Hormel Foods
Ottumwa: JBS Swift Pork
Storm Lake: Tyson Foods Inc. - Hillshire Brands
Funding for the P2 Intern Program includes federal grants, portions of solid waste tonnage fees, and cost share contributed by the host companies.
Pollution Prevention Services also provides confidential, non-regulatory technical assistance in the form of assessments, infrared thermographic analysis, development assistance for Environmental Management Systems, workshops, an equipment loan program, and access to an electronic library of technical resources. These services are offered at no cost to help companies reduce expenses through source-reduction strategies to improve process efficiency and reduce or eliminate waste.
For more information on the Pollution Prevention Intern Program and a list of 2023 projects, visit: www.iowap2interns.com. Case summaries of the 2023 projects will be posted to this site in the fall.