Ford Motor Company's Oakville (Canada) Assembly plant now sends no operational waste-to-landfill, an achievement that gives the automaker the distinction of becoming landfill-free at all its manufacturing facilities in Canada. Oakville Assembly is the first Ford assembly plant in North America to achieve this environmental designation.

The Essex Engine Plant received landfill-free status in 2012 and Windsor Engine Plant in 2013. A total of 21 Ford facilities around the globe maintain zero waste-to-landfill status, according to the automaker. By Ford’s definition this means that those facilities do not send any operational waste to a landfill.

In 2013, Oakville Assembly recycled close to 2,000 metric tons of wood, cardboard, paper and plastic, saving more than 5,000 cubic meters of landfill space and more than 32 million liters of water. This represents enough landfill space to fulfill the municipal waste disposal needs for a community of more than 5,500 people for one year. The plant even sends its wastewater treatment plant sludge to a power generation company, where it is converted into energy for use back in the community.

The Oakville Assembly plant’s success will help Ford achieve its target of reducing global waste to landfill by 40 percent per vehicle produced from 2011 to 2016, according to the automaker. Ford said it has already reduced global per vehicle waste to landfill by 40 percent from 2007 to 2011.

Oakville Assembly is Ford’s largest manufacturing plant in Canada standing at close to 5.5 million square feet on 487 acres. Oakville Assembly manufactures the Ford Edge, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKX and the Lincoln MKT. In 2013, Ford announced a $700 million investment to transform Oakville Assembly into an advanced global manufacturing facility. The plant will manufacture the all-new 2015 global Edge and ship it to more than 60 countries, according to the automaker.