[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 120 (Thursday, September 22, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1932-E1933]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      RECOGNIZING THE OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENTAL RECORD OF LEXMARK 
                             INTERNATIONAL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BEN CHANDLER

                              of kentucky

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 22, 2005

  Mr. CHANDLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to shower praise on my 
constituents at Lexmark International, whose recent awards for 
environmental excellence show yet again the extremely impressive 
commitment of Lexmark to environmental protection.
  As I am sure most of my colleagues know, Lexmark is one of the 
world's leading manufacturers of printers and developers of cutting-
edge printing solutions for enterprises large and small. Lexmark is 
headquartered in Lexington, the heart of the Sixth Congressional 
District of Kentucky, and truly has become a global leader in the 
information technology sector.
  Having toured Lexmark's headquarters and having viewed the range of 
highly-sophisticated equipment that Lexmark offers, and having met with 
one impressive engineer and manager after another during my visit with 
Lexmark, I congratulate Lexmark on being one of the true industrial 
gems of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
  I am especially proud of Lexmark because when my grandfather served 
as Governor of Kentucky, he attracted Lexmark's predecessor, IBM, to 
the location Lexmark so

[[Page E1933]]

proudly occupies today. When I work with my friends at Lexmark, I will 
confess that I am mindful of my grandfather's role decades ago.
  Lexmark does more than produce great products and systems for its 
customers. It upholds an environmental ethic that has been in place 
since the company's inception in 1991.
  Most recently, Lexmark's headquarters was awarded with ISO 
(International Standardization Organization) 14001 certification, which 
is the gold standard for environmental compliance. Only the best of the 
best achieve it. ISO 14001 is the world's most recognized environmental 
system management framework, and to be certified--as Lexmark has been--
takes an enormous amount of effort.
  ISO 14001 certification in Lexington is only the most recent addition 
to a long line of environmental achievements by Lexmark. Almost 
immediately after the company's inception in 1991, Lexmark initiated a 
novel and still-creative program for recycling used printer cartridges. 
Over the past 14 years this program has redirected millions of pounds 
of cartridges away from landfills and to recycling facilities. And 
these are not just any recycling facilities, but workshops that employ 
physically challenged adults to disassemble the cartridges for 
recycling in a safe environment.
  Lexmark is exporting not only great products, but also its 
environmental ethic. Lexmark's site at Orleans, France, became one of 
the first companies in Europe to receive ISO 14001 certification. 
Lexmark Philippines has received national recognition there, not just 
for the company's commitment to environmental responsibility in every 
aspect of product design, manufacture, distribution, and use, but for 
efforts to preserve vital ecosystems as well.
  Even more recently, Lexmark sites in Rosyth, Scotland; Boulder, 
Colorado; Juarez, Mexico; Chihuahua, Mexico; and Cebu, Philippines have 
met all the requirements to achieve ISO 14001.
  I am sure my colleagues would agree that for a company to combine 
world-class products with a superior commitment to the environment and 
worker health and safety represents exactly what we hope American 
industry will do around the world.
  Lexmark's participation as a charter member in the United States 
Environmental Protection Agency's EnergyStar program, its receipt of 
the Kentucky Governor's Environmental Excellence Award for Industrial 
Environmental Leadership, and its leadership in everything from ``The 
Reforest the Bluegrass Program'' in Lexington to Lexmark's Rainforest 
Project, which protects the indigenous peoples, plants, and animals of 
the rainforest, all reflect the unsurpassed commitment to environmental 
protection that defines the company.
  The Lexmark Environmental Program has committed the company to three 
areas of concentration: the design of its products and services, its 
management of resources, and the commitment to being a responsible 
neighbor and employer. If the various awards Lexmark has received are 
any indication, the company certainly seems to be living up to its 
mission.
  Mr. Speaker, you can see why I am so proud of my constituents at 
Lexmark. I ask you and my esteemed colleagues in the House of 
Representatives to recognize the many outstanding accomplishments of 
Lexmark's employees recently and over the history of the company.

                          ____________________