Verso Paper Corp.  was recently awarded the 2008 Environmental and Energy Achievement Award from the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA) for its work with the Bucksport (Maine) Environmental Innovation Partnership (BEIP). AF&PA President and CEO Donna Harman presented the award to Verso President and CEO Mike Jackson at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

The BEIP is a collaboration among Verso’s Bucksport Mill in Maine, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Town of Bucksport, the University of Maine, environmental groups and interested citizens created to help the mill further reduce its environmental footprint.

“By creating new partnerships and developing new methods to improve air quality, Verso’s Bucksport project slashed emissions, considerably exceeding EPA’s benchmark, and at the same time cut the mill’s water usage and waste output, shrinking their environmental footprint,” said Harman.