CHINA TOWNSHIP, Mich., Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Employees, company officials and guests today celebrated the Belle River Mills Compressor Station's successful completion of the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 14001 certification process. MichCon's Belle River Mills Compressor Station is the 13th DTE Energy facility to receive the environmental management certification. ISO 14001 is an internationally recognized standard that provides a facility with the basic framework for managing environmental impacts. Certification requires that employees must be aware of how their job can impact the environment. An environmental management system certified to the ISO 14001 standard is effective because it involves every aspect of a facility's activities that can affect the environment. Periodic reviews of the system, by a third party after certification, ensure that it continues to be effective in the future. Station Manager Larry Maiorana accepted the ISO 14001 certificate from Gerald Schwarz, lead auditor for NSF-ISR, the accredited third party auditing organization that reviewed the plant's effort to achieve certification. Maiorana said that earning certification was truly a team effort that demonstrates the commitment of all plant personnel to their individual and collective role as stewards of the environment. "The employees of the Belle River Mills Compressor Station are committed to protecting the environment both as individuals and as a team," he said. "We recognize that our individual actions can make a positive impact. We also know that we can accomplish even more by working together." Helping to achieve the certification were the 20 members of Local 223 of the Utility Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO who work at the Belle River Mills Compressor Station. "I'm proud to see everybody working together to accomplish something this important," said Dave Humenny, Belle River Mills Local 223 committee person. "Compliance with the ISO 14001 standard is good for the environment and the community." Also participating in Friday's ceremonies were Robert A. Richard, Senior Vice President, MichCon, and Skiles Boyd, DTE Energy Vice President, Environmental Management and Resources. The Belle River Mills Compressor Station is located in St. Clair County and compresses and withdraws gas from three natural gas storage fields -- the Columbus, West Columbus and Belle River Mills fields. The station's work force of about 30 employees managed to earn certification while also completing a number of significant construction projects. These projects include installing air pollution control equipment on compressor engines -- at a cost of $5.5 million -- to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by 60 percent and Installation of a new natural gas refrigeration plant and dehydration plant that will recycle refrigerant and operate at near zero emissions. MichCon is a subsidiary of DTE Energy, a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. MichCon serves 1.3 million customers with natural gas service in 550 Michigan communities. Information about DTE Energy is available at http://www.dteenergy.com/. DATASOURCE: DTE Energy CONTACT: John J. Austerberry, +1-313-235-8859, or Lorie N. Kessler, +1-313-235-8807, both of DTE Energy Web site: http://www.dteenergy.com/

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