Environmental Leadership Awards 1999: Norman Goldenberg

Norman Goldenberg could have been a dentist.

Goldenberg, vice president of Terminix International and a veteran of TruGreen-ChemLawn, Memphis, Tenn., said when he was young, he wanted to be a dentist. Thankfully for the lawn care industry, Goldenberg’s parents couldn’t afford dental school, so he pursued business and science.

Now, after 38 years in the lawn care industry, Goldenberg has not only had a successful career, but has also witnessed the importance of environmental sensitivity change over time.

"Early on, customers wanted their properties free of pests, and they weren’t really concerned how that performance took place," Goldenberg explained. "Now, the pendulum has swung in the other direction. Customers of today want the same protection and care for their properties, but they are more aware of the standards of concern that must be prevalent."

A Career Path. After majoring in entomology at the University of Florida, Goldenberg was employed by Orkin Exterminating Co. for seven years.

After being the president of the pest and lawn care operations at another multi-service company, Goldenberg went into business for himself operating Alert Lear Pest Control Co. and Armour Exterminating Co. in Miami and West Palm Beach, respectively, for 14 years. He sold his businesses to Waste Management in 1987 and became involved with TruGreen, which was a Waste Management company until it was bought in 1990 by ServiceMaster, which already owned Terminix International. Goldenberg became vice president of government and regulatory affairs for Terminix and TruGreen-ChemLawn.

Goldenberg recognized there are added environmental responsibilities assumed of him and his company for being a leader in the industry. TruGreen-ChemLawn maintains an Environmental Stewardship Program, which includes direction on preventing and handling environmental concerns, such as spills, pesticide retention facilities and storage of products within the office confines. The company initiated nationwide posting of lawns in 1987 despite industry objections at the time, began installing recycling fill systems in the early 1970s, has a thorough and detailed product approval process and funded significant research on worker exposure, dislodgeable residues, pesticide runoff and biomonitoring.

"Like any global and market leader, we are perceived to stand out more than the ordinary licensed lawn care operator," Goldenberg remarked. "When issues come to the forefront, TruGreen-ChemLawn is expected to adhere to or reach standards of performance and environmental stewardship that may be overlooked in other firms. What we do as a company takes on a large measure of representation of the industry not only by our customers, but by the media, regulators and legislators.

"Ultimately, environmental stewardship protects our employees, their families and the communities in which they work and live," Goldenberg pointed out. "Environmental stewardship means we must provide the training and skills to develop people at all levels in our enterprises. It requires that we utilize the very best equipment that can be provided for the use of pesticide applications when and where required. It also requires that we respect the concerns of our customers, neighbors and environment as we conduct our services on a daily basis."

Environmental Activism. While claims of acute injury and cancer from pesticides have not been proven, according to Goldenberg, Integrated Pest Management and the Food Quality Protection Act risk cup both focus on what is now called the ‘precautionary principle,’ which is leading to the cancellation of residential uses of pesticides.

"The lawn care use of pesticides is a vulnerable target to the argument of the risk-benefit equation," Goldenberg said. "Food use of pesticides can be more readily justified on the basis of economics and an abundant and varied food supply. The lawn care industry is more fragmented than agriculture and has little political clout. Lawn care use of pesticides is highly visible and takes pesticides to the property line and sometimes over the property line of chemophobic people."

One of the biggest challenges associated with working so closely with the environment, according to Goldenberg, is listening to customers’ concerns, communicating with them and educating them even before listening to what regulators, competitors, suppliers and trade associations have to say.

"The vigil of what we do and how we do it will be forever more bearing on the performance of all lawn care companies. The greatest challenge is defining the ‘environment.’ Lead exposure to children is an environmental issue, yet it is impossible to remove lead from the environment. The concept of ‘The Dose Makes the Poison’ must be continually reinforced."

The industry as a whole, Goldenberg recommended, can be better environmental stewards by:

• Doing a better job of controlling off-target applications, especially with granular products
• Training employees on environmental sensitivity
• Avoiding shortcuts to push production of revenue
• Investing in well-designed and maintained equipment
• Communicating to prospects and customers openly and honestly

"We must all be environmental activists when it comes to running our businesses and controlling our destiny to the greatest extent possible," Golden-berg encouraged. "I have always been active in the political structure as a volunteer during the time that I have been in the industry. If we don’t play an active role then we have no cause to complain when issues are resolved to our detriment without our input."

The author is Assistant Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine.