Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corp. receives safety improvement honor

The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), Silver Spring, Maryland, has announced that its Safety Committee has awarded Johnston-based Rhode Island Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corp. (RIRRC) the 2016 Biggest Safety Improvement award. Along with Aria Energy, a Michigan-based renewable energy company, RIRRC will accept the award during the SWANA Safety Summit at Wastecon in Indianapolis  Aug. 24, 2016.

“It’s an honor to recognize RIRRC and Aria Energy’s safety programs, and I am very proud that they are the winners of SWANA’s new safety awards,” says David Biderman, executive director of SWANA. “The competition was very tough, as we received numerous excellent applications in both categories. Both companies deserve congratulations for their commitment to improvement and innovation.”

RIRRC conducted a safety program redesign in 2009 to promote the safety of employees, contractors and customers using its facility. The agency also trained safety officer Robert Lough to oversee the program. RIRRC says it has seen a significant reduction in workers’ compensation claims and has lowered insurance premiums and on-site incidents since the program’s inception. From 2014 to 2015, RIRRC’s incident rate dropped from 17.94 to 7.28, and its total number of injuries dropped 143 percent.

“We feel that the change experienced at our facility, as noticed by our employees, customers and contractors, is significant,” Lough said. “We understand that when it comes to safety, the work never ends, and we will continue to strive towards improvement.”

“It is an honor to be recognized by SWANA for our expanded safety protocols,” says Mike O’Connell, executive director of RIRRC. “The corporation focuses a great deal of energy and resources into our program so we can continue to provide a safe working environment for our employees, customers and contractors. Safety is the first pillar of our mission, which is to provide safe, environmentally compliant, clean and affordable solid waste and recycling services for the Rhode Island community. Having an excellent safety program is good business sense, and it’s the right thing to do.”