Nod Hill receives Aquarion Environmental Champion Award

This past Saturday, Nod Hill Brewery was honored to be one of five recipients of the 2022 Aquarion Environmental Champion Awards during a ceremony at the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, CT. Annually, the Environmental Champion Awards recognize organizations and individuals in the large business, small business (which we received), non-profit, adult, & student categories. This award celebrates community members across CT that dedicate themselves to preserving the state’s environmental resources and pursuing solutions for sustainability.

Most excitedly, as part of the award Nod Hill was offered the opportunity to direct a $5,000 grant to an environmental non-profit of their choice. The funds will be directed to the New England Pollinator Pathway, where they will be used towards clearing the banks of the Norwalk River of invasives, and establishing native plants in an effort to restore the natural habitat of the river way.

"We are grateful for the recognition and the opportunity to support this important work in such a tangible fashion." said co-owner David Kaye.

Established in 2017 in Ridgefield, Nod Hill Brewery is Connecticut’s first and only brewery powered completely by solar energy. The company’s 287-kilowatt rooftop solar array, completed in 2019, provides power for its entire facility and brewing process, and each year returns over 5,600 kilowatt-hours of electricity back to the power grid.

Nod Hill’s deep commitment to environmental responsibility is reflected in its zero-waste practices. Aiming to create as little waste as possible in its production process and business operations, the brewery offsets waste by donating grain used in brewing to local farms and follows safe wastewater protocols. In addition, Nod Hill limits the use of non-recyclable items at its seasonal beer garden.

Nod Hill supports a variety of sustainability initiatives including the Pollinator Pathway, a project which helps create routes for pollinators such as bees and hummingbirds across several Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states. By replacing invasive plants and weeds with a variety of native plant species in the meadow alongside its beer garden, Nod Hill has created a habitat for pollinators right on the brewery’s Ridgefield property. Additionally, Nod Hill’s newly-completed parking lot features solar-powered lighting and a riparian barrier of native plants.