Denver, April 22, 2008 — While people worldwide celebrate Earth Day this week, CH2M HILL OMI operations and maintenance experts in Augusta, Ga., have a special environmental milestone to celebrate themselves.

The team — which manages the 46.2 million-gallon-per-day James B. Messerly Water Pollution Control Plant in Augusta — has completed five years of perfect compliance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit program. That means billions and billions of gallons of wastewater perfectly treated and returned to recharge Georgia’s precious water supply.

Helping protect the environment and public health by expertly operating municipal wastewater systems has been at the heart of CH2M HILL OMI’s work since its founding in 1980, and today the company operates more than 200 water and wastewater treatment plants across North America. But as the company has grown, so has its range of sustainable solutions that can help communities and companies meet their own sustainability goals.

“We might be skillfully operating a water or wastewater treatment plant. We might be cleaning up soil, air or water contaminated by legacy systems. We might be working with a city to develop a smart land-use plan. But no matter what we do, our bottom-line goal is to help enhance the environment and quality of life in the communities in which we serve,” says Elisa M. Speranza, president of CH2M HILL OMI.

“Our partners typically have the will to be good ‘green’ citizens — and with our focused expertise, we can help provide the way to turn those green ideas into practical realities.”

In addition to delivering safe drinking water to people and protecting the environment through smart wastewater-system management, other ways that CH2M HILL OMI helps provide sustainable services include:

• Just six months after incorporation, the City of Johns Creek, Ga., opened the doors to its first city hall — a two-floor space that’s functional and environmentally friendly. CH2M HILL OMI people aimed to make conscious choices throughout the build-out process and to select, when possible, local vendors or vendors who proved to be leaders in innovative manufacturing. For example, they chose Sherwin-Williams paint that is a low volatile organic compound product. The carpet came from Georgia-based Shaw Industries Inc., made with post-consumer material. And The HON Company, which uses mostly salvaged metal or post-consumer materials, provided the office furniture. CH2M HILL OMI partners with Johns Creek to provide complete municipal services.



• For a large industrial firm with a portfolio of properties across the East Coast, CH2M HILL OMI is providing a range of environmental remediation services. CH2M HILL OMI’s core competency in operations, maintenance and monitoring is delivering process efficiency, speed and lower costs, while allowing the client to stay focused on what it does best.



• CH2M HILL OMI people help create and support wildlife habitats in and around the facilities the company operates. In Fayetteville, Ark., where CH2M HILL OMI operates the 12.6-mgd Paul R. Noland Wastewater Treatment Plant, over the past year employees have installed a feeding station for mink, planted berry-producing shrubs to provide food for three-toed box turtles, built nesting boxes to provide shelter for birds, and planted native perennial flowers that provide a home and food for butterflies. In addition, they purchased a tricycle for eco-friendly transportation around the site.



• Storm drains around Walla Walla, Wash., are being marked this year with permanent signage to warn citizens not to dump waste inside, thanks to some creative thinking by CH2M HILL OMI employees who operate and maintain the city’s wastewater system. Employees previously used paint to stencil no-dumping warnings on curbs next to the storm drains. But the team researched and designed a nicer, more informative curb marker that includes a hotline that people can call to report illegal dumping. Installation of the “Only Rain Down The Drain” markers began this winter, helping keep the community’s waterways clean and safe.



• In several communities, CH2M HILL OMI provides land-application services to beneficially reuse biosolids from wastewater treatment plants. For instance, around Hood River, Ore., the company created one efficient biosolids management program to serve five local cities. In line with state environmental requirements, the biosolids are collected, treated and applied on more than 100 approved sites to fertilize nonfood agricultural land, such as hayfields, instead of going to landfill. The Hood River approach won first place in the U.S. EPA’s 2002 Biosolids Exemplary Management Award program.



• In about 15 communities, CH2M HILL OMI manages a range of public works services that encompass “green collar” work — parks and grounds maintenance, solid waste collection and handling, mowing and more. In The Villages, Fla., where CH2M HILL OMI has provided O&M services since 1993, the scope of work expanded this spring to include curbside recycling services for this community of about 60,000 residents.

“Though our environmental record is a source of pride,” Speranza says, “we continue to push ourselves to develop and deliver ever more sustainable services to our partners for the future.”

Clients in government and industry rely on the people of CH2M HILL OMI to provide a range of custom-tailored operations and maintenance solutions. The company’s services include water and wastewater system optimization; contract O&M of water, wastewater and other utilities; and complete municipal operations, including administration, public works and community development — all backed by a commitment to safety, quality, innovation and customer service. Founded by CH2M HILL in 1980, the Englewood-based company serves clients in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit www.omi.ch2mhill.com.

Employee-owned CH2M HILL is a $5 billion global firm providing engineering, procurement, construction and operations for public and private clients. CH2M HILL has more than 24,000 employees worldwide and is routinely ranked among the Fortune Most Admired Companies in its industry. More information about its sustainability-oriented services — including greenhouse-gas management, sustainable building design, renewable energy strategies and more — is available at www.ch2mhill.com/sustainability.