10 Things The Empire Group does for the Environment!

To celebrate Earth Day, the Empire Group has put together a list of 10 things we do, as a group, to help the environment.

1. We put all of our drivers through Spotted Lanternfly Training to help cut down on the spread of these invasive insects into non-quarantined areas.

Spotted Lanternfly permits are required for Businesses and Organizations if you are moving within or from the quarantine zone in the course of your work. Last Fall, all of our drivers received training and permits to properly identify, report, and help stop the spread of the Lanternflies.

Our team gained knowledge on;

• Know how to identify Spotted lanternfly and its favorite food, the Tree of Heaven.
• Report SLF from areas outside the quarantine.
• If you are in an infested area, don’t travel with living lanternfly. Look before you leave!

2. We properly dispose of Hazardous waste – always!

The Empire Group, as a whole, takes pride in our ability to identify, contain, and properly dispose of hazardous (and non hazardous) waste, always! This can be a daunting or scary subject for many, but we are always ready and willing to help you. Call Elk at 610-372-4760 or email INFO@ElkEnv.com to talk about your hazardous (or non-hazardous) waste needs.

3. Empire Services recycles any and all resources found or created on a demolition site.

Empire Services takes time to assess the results of bringing a structure down, and is meticulous in the manner in which they sort and organize all of the raw materials. Metal is always recycled, and concrete is turned into crushed stone for future use. Other items that can be re-used or recycled in some way will be. Empire works hard to always be aware of any opportunity to recycle anything that they can from any site, and they always leave all sites clean and free of any remnants of the the job. Call Empire for any demolition needs you have at 610-372-6511.

4. Elk cleans up spills before they hit water ways, and performs soil remediation for any spills or contaminations from the past.

Elk has a dedicated ER and Spill team to help with Emergency Spill Remediation, and on-going soil testings and removal of contaminated soils. This helps keeps earth’s soil clean, healthy, and free of any contaminate that could effect humans, animals, or find it’s way into water. Don’t fret if you have, or spot, a spill – call Elk’s ER line at 1-800-851-7156 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – and we will be there to help you!

5. What about the contaminated soil from years past? We treat and dispose of hazardous and non-hazardous soils found in contaminated sites.

Elk has dedicated chemists to properly test, analyze, and identify any number of particulates in soils. They give our on-site teams this data so we know what we are dealing with, and how to best move and dispose of anything we may encounter. Our field service crew carefully removes contaminated soil, and does so in the most non-invasive path as possible to your property. The team is prepared for any surprises, and will keep you in the loop at all times.

6. Those same Chemists perform Lab Packing services to help contain and sort chemicals from Chemistry Labs and Manufacturers, keeping you up-to-date and safe!

Our skilled chemists meticulously sort, categorize, organize, and pack chemicals from labs and manufacturing plants for safe shipment to their next destination. Normally their next destination involves neutralizing any harmful chemical, mixing all liquid chemicals with an absorbant material, called a solidifier, making them harmless, and ready for a landfill.

7. DVC and Elk recycle Asphalt and Clean Soil from construction sites to be re-used in future construction.

DVC (Delaware Valley Contractors) moves tons and tons of materials every week, but some organic materials like clean soil, are used to fill in ravines on farming or residential properties, or for new construction. Asphalt from an old site, can be re-used for a new. Call DVC for your soil, asphalt, or other construction material trucking needs at 610-372-6511.

8. Speaking of trucking, as a company, we take strides to keep our Trucks moving in time-saving routes, which cuts down on our carbon footprint.

We have dedicated individuals to helps analyze each job and route, combining trips, or strategically scheduling them, making our logistics as short and well-planned as possible. This process keeps our drivers moving, our customers happy, and our emissions down. Our trucks could be driving to different sites for many different reasons, and our teams use a high level of communication to ensure these movements make sense for us and our customers.

9. We accept and properly recycle Universal and E-Waste.

We will accept and properly recycle Universal and E-Waste.

E-Waste consists of most electronics that have components that are highly recyclable, often we are managing the recycling of bulbs, batteries, and other small and large electronics.

Universal Waste is a category of waste materials designated as ” hazardous waste “, but containing materials that are very common. It is defined in 40 C.F.R. 273.9 , by the United States Environmental Protection Agency but states may also have corollary regulations regarding these materials.

Universal waste includes:

• Latex Paint
• Used Oil (such as motor oil or cooking oil)
• Batteries (alkaline or automobile batteries)
• Antifreeze

Businesses and other generators of such waste are required to provide for their proper disposal.

source: Wikipedia ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_waste )

Elk and Berks Transfer are well-prepared to either accept and deal with these waste for you, whether you are a resident or a business, or are ready to point you in the right direction.

10. We offer a wide range of EPA, RCRA, HAZWOPER, and DOT Training to our employees, and customers, keeping our team – and yours – prepared and safe!

Keeping our employees, and your employees trained inturn helps them to be better prepared in case a spill or accident occurs. These first moments of contact or identification of a hazardous material are the most important – our training keeps our and your team level-headed and ready to deal with anything that could occur. Our training sessions also include many Q&A opportunities that help EHS managers stay in compliance with EPA, DOT, RCRA, and more, these precautions alone keep more spills contained, and stop them from happening all together.