For Immediate Release

BETHLEHEM, Pa., May 3, 2002 - A team from Bethlehem Steel's corporate office received the corporation's Excellence in Environmental Achievement Award for 2001. The award, which was first presented in 1995, is the corporation's highest form of recognition for facilities, teams and individuals who have made significant contributions toward helping the corporation achieve its objective of environmental excellence.

The awards were presented by Bethlehem's chairman and chief executive officer Robert S. "Steve" Miller, Jr. and David E. Hess, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

Mr. Miller noted that since the environmental awards program was started seven years ago, "Bethlehem has made tremendous strides in continuously improving its environmental results and being publicly accountable for that performance. It is only fitting that we recognize and honor those teams and employees who I consider to be the backbone of our corporate environmental policy and who actually make that policy work," he said.

"These awards acknowledge what DEP has been promoting for years - that the business community is an important partner in the Commonwealth's efforts to protect and restore the environment," Mr. Hess said. "Environmental stewardship and economic growth do work together, as proven by the success of the Emission Reduction Credits Sales Team."

The Emission Reduction Credits Sales Team actively marketed emission reduction credits and nitrogen oxide allowances to businesses planning to construct new facilities. The transactions have resulted in significant revenue for the corporation with additional sales expected to be completed in the coming months. The team comprises employees from finance, law, purchasing, and safety, health and environment.

The award winning team selected the Wildlife Habitat Council, a national environmental organization located in Silver Spring, Md., to receive a $1,500 grant from the Bethlehem Steel Foundation that accompanies the award. The Wildlife Habitat Council is a nonprofit group of corporations, conservation organizations, and individuals dedicated to protecting and enhancing wildlife habitat.

Bethlehem Steel has a long history of environmental protection, having established a formal program in 1946. Bethlehem is one of only 60 companies, and the only steelmaker, to have endorsed the 10 principles of corporate environmental responsibility and stewardship originated by the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES). The relationships developed with CERES and the CERES partners have become the foundation of Bethlehem's environmental programs.

Return to News Releases