2019 NPS Environmental Achievement Awards

The National Park Service (NPS) is pleased to share the 2019 recipients of the annual Environmental Achievement Awards, honoring NPS teams and partners that demonstrate exceptional environmental accomplishments. Recipents are acknolwedged for their achievements in supporting the NPS goal of the preservation, protection, and stewardship of environmental resources.

Delaware North, a concessioner at Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, has won a 2019 National Park Service Achievement Award for their work in reducing food waste at the park. After losing their composting partner in 2016, Delaware North made it their mission to find an alternative composting solution. In 2017, they completed construction on the very first onsite composting project in the National Parks system. Shenandoah’s composting operation has diverted more than 85 tons of waste from landfills to date and has contributed to Delaware North’s goal of becoming landfill-free by 2020.

Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky received an NPS Good Neighbor Award in 2019 for its environmental stewardship and commitment to partnerships at the local, state, national and
international levels. The partnerships they’ve cultivated facilitate important research of the park’s extensive caves and keep both the park and surrounding communities free from pollution.

In North Carolina, Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site Green Team’s dedication to reducing the site’s carbon footprint earned them a 2019 NPS Environmental Achievement Award in the Sustainable Champions category. The Green Team, composed of park employees, has undertaken numerous projects since its formation, including reducing the park’s waste stream, installing solar power systems and introducing conservationist programs for kids to increase environmental awareness.