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Cove Shoe Company
Cove Shoe Company, located in Martinsburg, Blair County, produces men's and ladies' footwear, fabricated and assembled on-site. Products are shipped worldwide and customers include major retail shoe companies, catalogue companies and the federal government. The Clean Air Act of 1990 prompted Cove to reexamine its impact on the environment. Substantial quantities of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) were emitted from chemicals in the cleaners, finishes and adhesives used in producing shoes. The company developed an eighteen-month emission reduction program to significantly reduce the amount of VOCs and HAPs released, resulting in a major shift from solvent-based to water-based cleaners, finishes and adhesives. The company revised work practices, modified equipment and methods, began using safety containers for the remaining VOCs, modified spraying equipment to reduce overspray and reduced the amount of chemicals used. These equipment upgrades cost $60,800. This cost was offset by a permit change made possible by the reduced VOCs and HAPs. As a result of the process changes, the total pollutants emitted by Cove dropped from 85.8 tons in 1995 to 49.0 tons in 1997. Hazardous air pollutants were reduced from 50.4 tons to 21.8 tons. Toluene, a VOC and a HAP, was cut by more than half from 19.5 tons in 1995 to 8.4 tons in 1997. The two other principal chemicals at the facility, methylene chloride and hexane, were also cut by more than half. The elimination of solvent-based chemicals also reduced the amount of hazardous waste produced from 7,390 pounds in 1996 to 4,229 pounds in 1997.
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Cove Shoe Company
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