New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced today that DEC has awarded a $19.5 million five-year contract to operate the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I) to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). This contract award is funded by the State’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) and follows a competitive Request for Applications.

Commissioner Seggos said, “NYSP2I’s approach goes beyond compliance-driven activities and focuses on preventing pollution at its source and identifying opportunities to make New York companies more efficient and economically stronger. RIT has done a tremendous job operating NYSP2I for the past decade, and DEC looks forward to continuing our work together to reduce the pollution entering New York’s environment and the waste entering our landfills.”

NYSP2I will be directed by RIT and implemented through a statewide consortium that includes Binghamton University, Clarkson University, Cornell University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the State’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership network, with DEC oversight. The contract award is subject to Office of State Comptroller approval.

RIT has operated NYSP2I for the past 10 years, implementing programs that directly assist businesses in the State in pollution prevention, advancing strategies around emerging contaminants, reducing the generation and disposal of food scraps, conducting applied research and development, and educating stakeholders on pollution prevention approaches.

NYSP2I programs will continue to provide direct assistance to businesses that introduce more efficient production processes for manufacturers, pinpoint energy savings at a facility, suggest cleaner alternative material inputs, identify market opportunities for sustainable products, and help companies obtain green certifications. In addition, NYSP2I will continue efforts to reduce the generation of food scraps and pollution across the full cycle of waste generated by the food industry.

In addition, NYSP2I will implement a yearly community grants program, totaling nearly $1 million over five years. These grants will support local organizations raise awareness about pollution prevention strategies on the local level to improve public health, environmental quality, and economic sustainability.   

"We are thrilled to receive this award to continue to operate the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute, and we thank Governor Cuomo and DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos for their confidence in RIT," said RIT President David Munson. "We are proud of the impact that NYSP2I has had in helping businesses reduce their environmental impacts in ways that also improve their operations and their bottom lines. This partnership with New York state, our terrific university partners and the strong network of statewide MEP's is a model of successful collaboration that leads to outstanding results, and the re-designation will enable us to engage with more companies and organizations in these efforts."

“The New York State Pollution Prevention Institute’s accomplishments over the last decade here at RIT, working closely with the DEC and our partners across all corners of the state, have helped provide significant value to a wide range of New York state industries—both environmentally and economically,” said Charles Ruffing, NYSP2I’s director. “We look forward to expanding our impact in the future as we work to identify opportunities that will continue to help businesses, communities and the citizens of New York become more sustainable.”