SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Started as an offshoot of city disposal company Kavanaugh Bros Ltd. less than five years ago, KBL Environmental Ltd. has become a banner enterprise of its own.
KBL Environmental Ltd. general manager John Oldfield, left, and business development manager Jeff Dirks accept the Business of the Year award from NWT Chamber of Commerce president Kathy Gray at the Explorer Hotel on April 3. - Thandiwe Vela/NNSL photo
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In 2012, just three years after becoming the only government-approved receiver of hazardous waste in the NWT, KBL had seen revenue growth to the tune of 735 per cent -- establishing it as the waste management contractor for mining, exploration, oil and gas, and mine site remediation projects across all three territories.
Last week, KBL was named Business of the Year at the NWT Chamber of Commerce 2013 Business Excellence Awards in Yellowknife. The award was announced at the Explorer Hotel on April 3.
"Our business of the Year has been serving the North since 2009 and has grown from a staff of two to a staff of 40. That alone is a testament to the quality of their work and their leadership team," said chamber president Kathy Gray. "They're in the business of cleaning up the environment and assisting mining, exploration, government, oil and gas, and other clients developing and maintaining successful environmental management programs. They went through a rigorous 18-month process to earn a licence to develop a hazardous waste and transport facility in the NWT. Tonight they are cleaning up the chamber award for Business of the Year."
In addition to resource development site waste, KBL's Cameron Drive waste transfer facility also takes waste from commercial and industrial clients such as body shops.
The 3,500 square-foot facility handles waste including anti-freeze, batteries, used oil, contaminated water, aerosol cans, paint, and more hazardous materials such as hydrofluoric acid and cyanide.
It is equipped with explosion-proof lighting and a ventilation system that detects combustible gas in its hazards room.
The company has built a second waste transfer facility in Whitehorse and an office in Edmonton where its trucking division, KBL Logistics, is based to haul contaminated waste from along the Mackenzie Valley, Northern Alberta, and British Columbia.
The company owes its growth partly to a strong middle management team, said general manager John Oldfield, who started KBL with business development manager Jeff Dirks.
"We're very lucky to have a really strong staff," Oldfield said.
KBL's sister company Kavanaugh Waste Removal Ltd., which has provided domestic waste disposal services in Yellowknife for about 40 years, has 15 employees.
