Sustainability & Business Support 2023-2024

Dear Wisconsin Legislators,

As we near the end of 2024, I am excited to share some accomplishments of several of Wisconsin’s most innovative businesses and local governments. This report highlights those who have chosen to work with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to form strong partnerships and hold themselves to high standards to make Wisconsin a more sustainable and resilient state.

Environmental issues, big or small, can benefit from collaborative solutions and partnerships. That is why the DNR, through our Sustainability and Business Support section (SBS), emphasizes work that brings businesses, local governments and other partners together.

We work with our customers in many ways; it could be offering programming for specific industry sectors, or sharing information that will help Wisconsin’s communities and individual businesses be more resilient. No matter the topic, our focus is on our customers’ priorities and supporting them in reducing their environmental impacts. We align our programming and tools to complement the common requests our participants receive from customers, supply chains and even prospective employees. Participating in our non-regulatory SBS programs allows customers to record meaningful metrics, including efforts to address climate change, or document their general environmental ethic.

SBS administers three non-regulatory programs for Wisconsin businesses and local governments: the Small Business Environmental Assistance Program, Enviro-Check and Green Tier. Whether our customers need help understanding required permits, want to conduct an environmental assessment of their facility, or are looking for innovations that set them apart from their competition, SBS can assist.

I invite you to read on to learn more about all the exciting work of the past two years.

Sincerely,

Steven Little Deputy Secretary, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

The SBEAP team receives a wide range of questions from a variety of customers through our helpline and email box. Below are examples of the types of things we help with.

SBS engages and supports the Small Business Environmental Council (SBEC) to help make sure that the DNR does its best to serve Wisconsin’s small business community. The council:

• Advises the DNR on how existing rules affect small businesses,
• Provides a small business perspective on proposed regulations, and
• Helps make DNR documents easier to understand.

Seven members are appointed by the governor and legislature, and the eighth is appointed by the DNR Secretary. Together, they serve as the voice of Wisconsin’s small businesses at the DNR.

“The Small Business Environmental Council gives me a way to make sure that small businesses have a voice in rules that affect them and access to the environmental information and tools they need to establish and grow their business.”

In an effort to support Tier 1 and Tier 2 Green Tier participants in measuring and documenting their successes, the DNR developed a new metrics reporting form. The form helps participants record their environmental progress in relation to a meaningful business index (also known as normalizing). The collected information is specific to their facility(ies) and helps the DNR tell the collective story of Green Tier participants more accurately.

The new metrics form allows participants to:

• Efficiently enter and track data with the new companion electronic spreadsheet.
• Manage progress on goals by tracking results and seeing improvement over time against baseline data. This helps participants set relevant goals and see the progress they are making at a quick glance.
• Identify efficiencies using the normalized data format to demonstrate the effect changes in activity have on outcomes.
• Maintain transparency with external and internal stakeholders by providing environmental data on an annual basis to illustrate areas of continual improvement.

2023 marked the first year participants submitted their facilities’ data on the metrics form. The DNR, in turn, aggregated the data to show areas of measurable improvements and where there may be opportunities to do more.

The graphs below summarize the progress Green Tier participants have made in these key metrics. They show the percentage of participants who fall into each category of change.

Please note that even if a participant is measuring a metric, that doesn’t mean that during this reporting period they are actively working on an associated goal, they may just be starting to assess their impact in this area.

Most of our participants track where their solid waste goes, and many have specific goals to reduce their waste. Several participants, including Fredman Bag, 3M Cumberland and Kimberly-Clark Marinette, have achieved their zero-waste-to-landfill goals.

Many participants are improving their recycling efforts as they look for ways to keep waste out of landfills. Over 60% of respondents have increased their recycling rates. Those who have decreased recycling may have found alternative ways to reduce their waste streams. For example, Lauterbach Group focuses on using thinner materials in its printing operations to reduce the overall weight of the waste it generates.

Nearly 60% of respondents are reducing the amount of water they use. Many are using new or upgraded equipment to realize these savings. Both Fredman Bag and TCLAD installed new closed-loop systems that reuse water in their operations. Monitoring helps participants notice unexplained usage spikes and identify leaking valves, equipment that is left on, or other inefficiencies. It also allows facilities to address the problems to minimize water usage and energy consumption.

Electricity purchased from utilities is one of the largest expenses for many of our participants. Monitoring usage and finding efficiencies improves their bottom lines and the environment. 65% of the Green Tier participants who are measuring electricity use have reduced their usage against their baseline. Many participants are finding efficiencies through process changes to optimize production time and upgrading to newer equipment.

53% of participants who are measuring their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions saw reductions in comparison to their baseline year. Cortec Spray Technologies was able to reduce its GHG emissions by 17% by installing equipment upgrades like new elements in their ovens and make-up air units to their compressors.

Cortec Spray Technologies in Spooner produces products used to help protect metal parts during storage, manufacturing and cleaning. Using the Green Tier metrics form prompted them to evaluate their utility usage and understand their environmental impacts better.

By assessing their information through normalized data, they identified that production data more accurately represents efficiencies than sales data.

Each Green Tier participant sets goals to keep momentum on improving their environmental practices. We are excited to share several of their unique stories. Keep scrolling for a couple of examples.

ABB, Inc. (ABB) in New Berlin is a technology leader in electrification products, industrial automation, robotics and motion. The company’s 600 Wisconsin-based employees serve global customers in utilities, industry, transportation and infrastructure. Participation in Green Tier helps drive their longstanding commitment to improved environmental performance and sustainability. The motto of their New Berlin “Motion Business” unit is “We make the world turn by saving energy every day.”

They are living this motto by opening a new, carbon-neutral facility in 2024! The new headquarters, manufacturing facility and distribution center not only increase manufacturing capacity, they incorporate energy-saving features including: solar power, geothermal heat, a high-tech HVAC system and a variety of other energy efficiency investments.

“Our new facility aligns with ABB’s commitment to achieve zero emissions by 2030. We have made significant investments to improve our efficiencies, save energy and protect our environment at this New Berlin location by incorporating rooftop solar panels, improved insulation and advanced building controls to help reduce our carbon footprint.”

Holsum Dairies' (Holsum) farms, Irish Dairy and Elm Dairy, are located between Lake Michigan and Lake Winnebago, near Hilbert. These grade-A milk-producing sites care for about 4,000 milking cows each. Holsum consistently strives to enhance its environmental practices and contribute positively to the dairy industry.

Holsum uses information gathered from their EMS to identify strategies to increase efficiency and to meet those commitments, including:

• Emphasizing land management with seasonal cover crops that minimize erosion while increasing nutrient utilization,
• Maximizing milk production efficiency to reduce the amount of manure generated per hundred weight of milk produced,
• Establishing partnerships with local feed growers to use manure as crop fertilizer,
• Reducing energy use through electric and natural gas efficiencies,
• Investing in renewable energy technologies, including a renewable natural gas plant and a biodigester and
• Actively participating in community partnerships like the Calumet County Agriculture Stewardship Association.

Holsum continues to exemplify excellence in environmental sustainability, energy efficiency and responsible dairy farming practices. Their good stewardship practices ensure a brighter future for Wisconsin and the dairy industry as a whole.

Imagine businesses, communities and others across Wisconsin working together on climate resilience. The  Green Tier Charter for Climate Action , signed on Earth Day 2023, aims to make that vision a reality by promoting a collaborative approach for anyone who wants to take the next steps in becoming more sustainable and combating the effects of climate change.

The charter builds on the strengths of organizations that set climate goals, reduce their environmental footprint and proactively mitigate climate risks. It facilitates collaboration between different types of organizations to help our communities be more climate resilient and adaptive while supporting mitigation and equity.

Charter members are actively establishing their greenhouse gas baselines, creating plans to reduce emissions and working on their collaboration project activities.

There are several different ways that organizations can participate in the charter so they can be part of the solution even if they don’t know where to start. As charter membership grows, it expands climate resilience efforts across the state.

Green Tier Legacy Communities is a network that represents 20% of Wisconsinites. The network helps members learn from each other’s experiences, access funding opportunities, receive technical assistance and track their progress over time through annual reporting.

The cities, towns, counties and villages participating in Legacy Communities are located across the state and range in population from 250 (Egg Harbor) to over 100,000 (Eau Claire County). The diversity of membership is one of the network’s strengths, with rural and urban communities, some new on the path to sustainability and some experienced environmental stewards; all bringing their perspectives and experiences to the table.

 The mapping tool can also be accessed here. Using this link, the map legend allows you to toggle on and off district and county lines. 

Required annual reporting helps members track progress toward their goals and share information with their leadership, residents and each other. In 2023, we introduced a new reporting format with opportunities for members to share qualitative metrics and document quantitative, measurable progress across environmental categories. The new online format allows members to view each other's data and search on topics to find other communities working on similar projects.

Bayfield County is a leader in promoting and adopting renewable energy technologies. A Legacy Community since 2016, the county continuously strives to become more resilient.

Strong partnerships with local municipalities, tribal nations, utility companies, private businesses and other community organizations have culminated in the development of three large solar group buys, including the largest residential group buy in Wisconsin’s history!

From solar panels to alternative fuels, carbon-free micro grids to electric vehicle charging stations, the county’s investments continue to demonstrate to the wider community that these technologies are viable, reduce risks to services, can be more economical and are worth trying.

Legacy Communities encourages members to view all areas of government through a lens of sustainability. Stevens Point has been particularly effective at this since joining in 2017.

City officials view sustainability as “providing essential services to our community while maximizing our use of our financial resources, natural resources and staff expertise.” In turn, they have used the concept to guide investments in energy efficiency and resource-saving projects across their operations.

For example, Stevens Point chose to conduct an energy audit. The information gathered helped them establish a baseline from which to measure future progress and identify opportunities for improvement to their utilities. The results led them to make their wastewater treatment more efficient, upgrade their equipment, install a biodigester to heat municipal buildings with biogas and install solar panels to help offset energy demand.

If you would like to learn more about how SBS and its programs support Wisconsin businesses and local governments wherever they are on their path to sustainability, you can email the Sustainability and Business Support team at:  DNRBusinessSupport@wisconsin.gov .