CSR Press Release

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) at a meeting held with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) in Lansing on April 24, celebrated the achievement of the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action Leadership Award for Outstanding Partner Involvement.
The celebration was held to commemorate the extraordinary achievement by the team that included MDEQ, Whirlpool, Montgomery Watson and Warner Norcross & Judd, who worked together on the project to remediate the Whirlpool brown-field site in St. Joseph, Michigan, within 14 months instead of the scheduled 36 month period.

Commenting on this occasion, Michigan Governor, John Engler said, "Through their successful completion of the St. Joseph brown-field project, MDEQ and Whirlpool have shown what can be accomplished when the government and private sector join hands to work for the people." He added, "By working together to cleanup and return this property to the community at an accelerated pace, all the citizens of St. Joseph and Benton Harbor will enjoy the benefits of this co-operative effort."

In November 1999, the EPA honored Whirlpool Corporation with the first of a series of the Innovative Hazardous Waste Cleanup awards along with two other organizations in the mid west, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and General Motors Corp. The awards were instituted to encourage States and Industry to streamline hazardous waste cleanup programs under RCRA and to look at new innovative ways to re-develop brown-field sites.

David R. Whitwam, Chairman and CEO, Whirlpool said, "From the Whirlpool perspective the remediation and closure of Whirlpool's brown-filed site in St. Joseph in accordance with all the procedures required by Michigan laws and regulations, is an outstanding example of how regulatory processes can and should work." He added, "At Whirlpool we value our relationship with our communities and therefore we are proud to receive EPA's recognition for our efforts to preserve our environment as a commitment to our businesses and to our communities at large."

Whirlpool Corporation is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances. Headquartered in Benton Harbor, the company manufactures in 13 countries and markets products under 11 major brand names in more than 170 countries. Additional information about the company can be found on the Internet at www.WhirlpoolCorp.com.

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