CPIA announces 2014 Plastics Industry Leadership Award winners

The Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA) has selected the winners of the 2014 Plastics Industry Leadership Awards, designed to recognize outstanding individuals and businesses for their commitment and dedication to the growth and sustainability of the Canadian plastics industry.

The 2014 Leader of the Year Award recipient is Mark Daniels, senior vice president of sustainability & environmental policy for Hartsville, S.C.-based plastic bag maker Hilex Poly. “Daniels has over 25 years experience in the plastic retail carry-out bag industry,” CPIA said in a statement. “In addition to serving on CPIA’s plastic bag task force and providing support and guidance during the 2012 City of Toronto plastic bag ban, Daniels also serves as the Chairman for the American Progressive Bag Alliance – a division of the SPI – and sits on the Board of Directors for the Western Plastics Association, the Florida Retail Federation, and Texas Retail Association.”

The Plastics Innovator Award is for those companies or individuals that have contributed to the expansion of the Canadian plastics industry, through advancement of the Canadian plastics industry in the areas of materials, products, process/technology, or marketing/communications. This year’s Plastics Innovator Award winner is Mark Lichtblau, corporate vice president of Toronto-based Haremar Plastic Manufacturing, a supplier of custom PE film packaging for consumer and industrial markets. “Mark is an innovative leader and a driving force behind the technical and sales achievements of his company, with his vision and talents well represented in the success of Haremar Plastic Manufacturing,” CPIA said.

The Plastics Sustainability Award recognizes individuals or organizations who have contributed to the sustainability of the Canadian plastics industry in an environmental, social or economic manner, including post-use plastics recovery. The first winner is Granby, Que.-based polystyrene foam product make Polyform Cellular Plastics Inc. “Polyform heavily invests in R&D to find sustainable solutions to expanded plastics including PS, PP, and PE, which are re-injected into a building product that will be permanently embedded into concrete, giving the product a true sustainable use,” CPIA said.

The second Plastics Sustainability Award winner is Quebec-based Cascades. “In early 2013 Cascades launched EVOK, the first line of polystyrene meat trays in North America made with 25 per cent recycled content, reducing the environmental footprint of its PS foam tray line by 20 per cent,” CPIA said.

The third Sustainability Award winner for 2014 is Polynova Industries Inc., of Richmond, B.C. “Early adopters of eco-friendly technologies, Polynova has used various biodegradable additive materials to polyfilm bags since 1991, including oxo-biodegradable, starch based, wood fibre PE and lately, bio-marine waste blended PE,” CPIA said.

The CanPlast Award honours individuals who have contributed their time, energy and expertise to improving the competitive and environmental performance of Canada’s plastics industry.

The first CanPlast recipient is Cathy Cirko, recently retired CPIA vice president, post-use. “A dedicated advocate, Cathy skillfully represented CPIA throughout Canada and internationally as a vocal proponent for a sustainable plastics industry,” CPIA said.

The second CanPlast winner is Charles Russell, market manager, bag, liner and wrap, with Calgary-based Nova Chemicals Corp. “Russell is recognized not only for his contributions to Nova Chemicals but for his CPIA contributions,” CPIA said. “He joined the CPIA board in 2010, continuing Nova’s commitment to CPIA and active, industry leadership. He was an involved member of the Post-Use Committee and also chaired the Membership Development Committee.”

The third CanPlast winner is Michel Iliesco of Quebec-based Cascades. “Iliesco received this award in recognition for his contributions to lobbying efforts against the proposed increase to 2013 PS stewardship fees by EEQ,” CPIA said. “He is actively involved in several pilot projects relating to plastics recovery and recycling.”

Finally, the CPIA’s Lifetime Achievement Award – which honours individuals who have made outstanding achievements and contributed enduring legacies to Canada’s plastics industry – is being given to Dr. Patrick Moore, a leader in the international environmental field for more than 40 years. An author and public speaker, Moore is an unabashed advocate for plastics, specifically PVC and the plastics-related synthetic compound bisphenol A. “Dr. Moore was a co-founder of Greenpeace and served for nine years as president of Greenpeace Canada and seven years as a director of Greenpeace International,” CPIA said. “In recent years, Dr. Moore has been focused on the promotion of sustainability and consensus building among competing concerns.”

The awards were presented at CPIA’s Plastics Industry Leadership Awards Celebration on June 19, 2014 in Toronto.