Awards - CT
2011 Aquarion Environmental Champion Award Winners
 | ||||||
|
Against a backdrop of more than 900 guests and surrounded by lush greenery ringing with peacock’s calls, Aquarion Water Company named its four 2011 Aquarion Environmental Champions during a recent ceremony at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo.
Among the distinguished guests who helped present the awards was U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who congratulated Aquarion for its own stewardship of the environment. The Senator then introduced representatives of Norwalk company Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., which earned the Corporate Award for its internal recycling programs.
Northrop Grumman has a Pollution Prevention Committee, comprising various levels of employees at the Norwalk facility. This group establishes and works on goals and opportunities to minimize and reduce the company’s environmental impact, and to communicate to fellow employees the various aspects of environmental awareness.
Senator Blumenthal explained that the Pollution Prevention Committee guided the company to recycling, reclaiming, and reusing more than 21 tons of waste.
 | |||
|
Jack Betkoski, Vice Chairman of the state Department of Public Utility Control (now the Public Utilities Regulatory Agency), presented the winning Youth and Adult Awards.
Betkoski described Simsbury High School senior Natalie Valentin, the youth winner, as having an uncommon commitment to and passion for the environment. Natalie has been active in environmental causes within the school and, outside school, she has volunteered with the Farmington Valley River clean-up, and recently started working at a small organic farm.
Natalie intends to major in environmental policy when she attends college and continue her involvement in conservation and sustainable development, Betkoski said.
 | ||||||
|
Richard Emmons of Stamford received the Adult Award as a result of his volunteer work with the state’s CARE (CT Aquatic Resource Education) program, through which he has shared his love of fishing since 2003. As a CARE volunteer, he has organized and taught fishing classes, with 30 to 50 people per class. He also extends his classes to disabled veterans, inner-city youth, and Special Olympics athletes.
According to Betkoski, an important lesson in all Emmons’s classes is the impact of human action on nature, while emphasizing the importance of protecting the environment.
 | ||||||
|
Tom Baden, editor of the Connecticut Post newspaper, presented the Non-Profit Award to CUSH (Clean Up Sound and Harbors), a non-profit organization in Stonington. Established in 2007, CUSH has enlisted volunteers to test and monitor the rivers, harbors and other waters in and around Stonington, Mystic and Pawcatuck. It has helped fight increased development in local watersheds; pushed for action to stop raw sewage from draining into the harbor; cleaned out debris from waterways; and educated residents and boaters about environmentally friendly landscaping and general water awareness.
 | ||||||
|
Aquarion President and CEO Charles V. Firlotte said the company will continue to seek out and recognize Connecticut’s Environmental Champions for years to come. “Across our great state, thousands of volunteers devote endless time and energy to protect and restore Connecticut’s natural resources,” he said. “We appreciate and thank everyone for their great work, and the Environmental Champion Award is our way of honoring and supporting those who are true champions of the environment, spearheading projects that have improved and protected our state’s natural resources.”
