​BALTIMORE (April 29, 2020) – BGE's contributions to a community greening project in Annapolis and recycling of more than eight tons of batteries in 2019 have been recognized with two separate awards for making a positive environmental impact.

The People Loving and Nurturing Trees (PLANT) Green Award honors BGE's tree planting and tree care initiatives. This is the 11th time BGE has won the PLANT Green Award, the highest honor given by the Maryland Urban and Community Forest Committee of the Maryland Association of District Forestry Boards in partnership with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forestry Service. BGE's PLANT Green Award application highlighted the company's two-decades of volunteering to help sort plants in advance of GreenScape—a city and community partnership to beautify public spaces throughout the city of Annapolis—as well as the company's donation of a tree planted at Germantown Elementary School during an Annapolis Arbor Day event. 

The Call2Recycle 2019 Leader in Sustainability Award recognizes BGE and other top performing Call2Recycle program participants for their commitment to battery recycling. Call2Recycle, Inc., is a non-profit organization that manages battery recycling for thousands of businesses in the United States and Canada. BGE packaged and shipped 17,186 pounds of batteries to Call2Recycle last year, thanks in large part to a partnership with ARC Carroll County. A longstanding contract with that organization gives people with intellectual and developmental disabilities the opportunity to work at the BGE Waste Transfer Facility, preparing recycled battery packages for shipment to Call2Recycle.

"Across BGE, our employees appreciate opportunities to strengthen the company's environmental stewardship which complement our mission to provide customers with safe, reliable natural gas and electric service," said Liz O'Connor, vice president of support services at BGE. "These awards celebrate the leadership and creativity of a diverse group of teams at BGE and remind us to continue embracing new ideas that enhance our contribution to collaborative conservation efforts throughout central Maryland."

Customers agree. This month BGE was named a 2020 Environmental Champion by Escalent, a top human behavior and analytics firm, in a study of how customers rate 140 utilities on work to protect the environment. Fellow Exelon utilities ComEd, Delmarva Power, PECO, and Pepco also made the list.

BGE's commitment to environmental stewardship is a core company pillar. BGE joined the Maryland Department of the Environment's Green Registry in 2018 and has been ISO 14001 certified since 2012. This year, BGE was named an Environmental Protection Agency ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year for the 10th time. A total of 15 BGE locations across the company's service area are National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitats and BGE's Spring Gardens natural gas facility has a Silver Tier Conservation Certification from the Wildlife Habitat Council. BGE is also a three-time recipient of the National Arbor Day Foundation/National Association of State Foresters Tree Line USA national award for demonstrating practices that protect and enhance America's urban forests through quality tree care, worker training, tree planting, and public education.

More information about BGE's environmental initiatives is available at bge.com. Feature stories about BGE's environmental work are available at bgenow.com.

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BGE, founded in 1816 as the nation's first gas utility and headquartered in Baltimore, is Maryland's largest natural gas and electric utility. The company's approximately 3,200 employees are committed to safe and reliable energy delivery to more than 1.3 million electric customers and more than 680,000 natural gas customers in central Maryland. In the J.D. Power 2017, 2018, and 2019 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Studies ^SM  BGE was ranked Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Business Electric Service in the East among Large Utilities. In the J.D. Power 2018 and 2019 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Studies ^SM BGE was ranked Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Business Natural Gas Service among utilities in the East Region. BGE is a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (Nasdaq: EXC), the nation's leading competitive energy provider. Connect with BGE on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, and engage with the latest BGE stories on bgenow.com. 

Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (or "BGE") received the highest score in the East Region of the 2019 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study and the East Large Segment of the 2019 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study of gas and electric utility customer satisfaction among business customers. Visit jdpower.com/awards.