thedrifter
02-04-03, 09:45 AM
WASHINGTON -- The war on terrorism is not the only conflict the Marine Corps is fighting. Marines wage a daily battle to protect the natural resources entrusted to their care.
Marine Corps' installations encompass 40 miles of coastline, 165,000 acres of forest, agriculture and protected land and more than 2 million acres of training and maneuvering areas, according to officials with the Land Use and Military Construction Branch, Installations and Logistics, Headquarters Marines Corps.
With all of this real estate comes the huge responsibility of protecting its natural resources for future generations, according to Maj. Craig Eck, the environmental compliance officer in the Land Use and Military Construction Branch. This battle to protect the environment is fought on several fronts ranging from protecting the endangered species living in undeveloped training areas to reducing the waste material generated by the 173,000 active-duty Marines and their families who live and work on Marine Corps installations.
Some of the Corps environmental objectives include:
- Providing a current environmental policy Corpswide.
- Planning and budgeting resources to meet these environmental objectives.
- Ensuring environmental compliance through management programs and compliance evaluations.
- Promoting prevention as the primary means for maintaining environmental compliance.
- Seeking out innovative technologies and practices to improve environmental management.
- Implementing training and education at all levels to establish effective communication of the environmental management program.
Mission versus environment
With the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, training became even more important as Marines prepare for deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Yet the Marine Corps must balance this need to provide realistic training with the obligation to protect the land entrusted to its care.
About 50 species of endangered or threatened plants and animals live in the woodlands, marshes, deserts, beaches, rivers and coastal waters managed by the Corps.
"Marines are the federal leaders in proactive ecosystem stewardship, which can be seen by our track record of species protection and recovery throughout the nation," said Heidi Hirsh, a natural resources specialist with the Land Use and Military Construction Branch. Headquarters Marine Corps has established guidelines for minimizing the impact training requirements have on its wildlife.
Individual installations have also established base orders tailored to protect the habitats and wildlife native to their regions. Many installations restrict training during certain seasons to minimize training impacts to the environment.
"The real challenge is to find the balance between natural resource conservation and military training," said William Berry, a wildlife biologist with Environmental Security at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif.
In some instances, the Corps' need for undeveloped training areas has been crucial to providing ecological preserves. Camp Pendleton, with more than 17 miles of coastline and approximately 125,000 acres of land, contains the largest areas of undeveloped coastal terraces and immediate inland areas in Southern California, Berry said. Eighteen federally-listed species, including the bald eagle, use this base at some point during the year.
While it can be difficult to attribute species improvements due to the Corps' management actions or due to natural or other causes, the numbers are hard to dispute. The California least tern, a federally-listed species, has increased its numbers at Camp Pendleton from about 200 nests in 1985 to over 1,000 nests in 2000, Berry said. "Certainly this increase is due in large part to our management efforts."
Other endangered or threatened species found at Camp Pendleton have shown similar increases over the years, Berry said.
Camp Pendleton is not the only installation winning the battle to protect the environment.
Annual, supervised, amphibious assault vehicle drives through the Nu'upia ponds aboard MCB Hawaii along with the construction and management of new pond areas have improved the nesting grounds for one species found only in Hawaii. The estimated 60 Hawaiian stilts that nested at the ponds in 1982 has doubled to 135 as of January 2001, according to Dr. Diane Drigot, a senior natural resource manager with MCB Hawaii Environmental Department.
Environmental and conservation efforts at MCB Hawaii have earned the installation Department of the Navy environmental awards for the past seven years.
"Saving a Few Good Species"
In 1996, the Marine Corps, working closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, began a poster campaign to educate Marines and the public about the Corps' natural resources stewardship program. The series, titled "The Marines - We're Saving a Few Good Species," contains five posters highlighting some of the Corps successes.
The first poster, titled "These Guys Hit the Beach Everyday" emphasized how the western snowy plover and the Marines of Camp Pendleton can share the same turf cooperatively in environmentally-sensitive areas.
The Secretary of the Interior unveiled the next poster in 1998. "Operation RCW: The New Air-Ground-Team," showed the successful management of the red-cockaded woodpecker by the personnel at MCB Camp Lejuene, N.C. The third poster, "Armored Threat and Threatened Armor," featured the threatened desert tortoise and a tank at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif.
The fourth poster featured the American alligator found at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, S.C. The alligator was listed as endangered in 1967. Thanks to the Marines and USFWS working together, the alligator fully recovered and the USFWS removed the species from the endangered list in 1987, Hirsh said.
The last poster was the first to feature an endangered plant. "Small Whorled - Big Mission" shows Marines training in woods populated with the small whorled pogonia. MCB Quantico, Va., hosts the largest number of plant colonies in Virginia, said Hirsh.
The posters recognize the Marines' military training role as well as the strong ethic they have developed toward natural resource conservation, Hirsh said. The goal is to continue, in partnership with USFWS, conserving the habitats entrusted to the Corps, "while educating the public that military operations are not only compatible with species conservation, but more often than not, the mission is the very reason threatened or endangered species still exist on those lands," she added.
Reducing the Waste
Another method for reducing the Marine Corps impact on the environment is to reduce the amount of waste products Marines generate. Marines are actively encouraged to recycle everything from soda cans to office paper.
Most military housing areas throughout the Corps have some type of curbside program in place to collect recyclable material to divert this material from municipal landfills. In 2000, the Marine Corps recycled more than 67,000 tons of material that would have otherwise been sent to a landfill, said David Heinrichs, facilities engineer program manager, Facilities Branch, Installations and Logictics, HQMC.
In 2000, Marine Corps recycling programs generated more than $2.6 million in direct revenues - resulting in more than $9 million in avoided costs - by diverting recyclable material from land fills, Heinrichs said.
In 2001, the recycling program generated more than 2.9 million in revenues, he said. Marines recycled more than 58,000 tons of material, including 14,400 tons of paper, 14,000 tons of wood and 15,600 tons of metal, he added.
The Marine Corps also has a strong hazardous waste reduction program. Initiatives such as replacing chemical solvents with detergent solutions for cleaning metal parts are promoted throughout the Marine Corps. As a result, since 1993, hazardous waste disposal at Marine Corps installations has been reduced by more than 75 percent.
Maintaining realistic training while preserving the natural resources entrusted to the Corps is not an impossible mission, said Eck, but it does "requires hard work and determination."
As someone once said of Marines, "If it was easy, everyone would do it and it wouldn't be the Marine Corps."
Sempers,
Roger
Marine Corps' installations encompass 40 miles of coastline, 165,000 acres of forest, agriculture and protected land and more than 2 million acres of training and maneuvering areas, according to officials with the Land Use and Military Construction Branch, Installations and Logistics, Headquarters Marines Corps.
With all of this real estate comes the huge responsibility of protecting its natural resources for future generations, according to Maj. Craig Eck, the environmental compliance officer in the Land Use and Military Construction Branch. This battle to protect the environment is fought on several fronts ranging from protecting the endangered species living in undeveloped training areas to reducing the waste material generated by the 173,000 active-duty Marines and their families who live and work on Marine Corps installations.
Some of the Corps environmental objectives include:
- Providing a current environmental policy Corpswide.
- Planning and budgeting resources to meet these environmental objectives.
- Ensuring environmental compliance through management programs and compliance evaluations.
- Promoting prevention as the primary means for maintaining environmental compliance.
- Seeking out innovative technologies and practices to improve environmental management.
- Implementing training and education at all levels to establish effective communication of the environmental management program.
Mission versus environment
With the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, training became even more important as Marines prepare for deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Yet the Marine Corps must balance this need to provide realistic training with the obligation to protect the land entrusted to its care.
About 50 species of endangered or threatened plants and animals live in the woodlands, marshes, deserts, beaches, rivers and coastal waters managed by the Corps.
"Marines are the federal leaders in proactive ecosystem stewardship, which can be seen by our track record of species protection and recovery throughout the nation," said Heidi Hirsh, a natural resources specialist with the Land Use and Military Construction Branch. Headquarters Marine Corps has established guidelines for minimizing the impact training requirements have on its wildlife.
Individual installations have also established base orders tailored to protect the habitats and wildlife native to their regions. Many installations restrict training during certain seasons to minimize training impacts to the environment.
"The real challenge is to find the balance between natural resource conservation and military training," said William Berry, a wildlife biologist with Environmental Security at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif.
In some instances, the Corps' need for undeveloped training areas has been crucial to providing ecological preserves. Camp Pendleton, with more than 17 miles of coastline and approximately 125,000 acres of land, contains the largest areas of undeveloped coastal terraces and immediate inland areas in Southern California, Berry said. Eighteen federally-listed species, including the bald eagle, use this base at some point during the year.
While it can be difficult to attribute species improvements due to the Corps' management actions or due to natural or other causes, the numbers are hard to dispute. The California least tern, a federally-listed species, has increased its numbers at Camp Pendleton from about 200 nests in 1985 to over 1,000 nests in 2000, Berry said. "Certainly this increase is due in large part to our management efforts."
Other endangered or threatened species found at Camp Pendleton have shown similar increases over the years, Berry said.
Camp Pendleton is not the only installation winning the battle to protect the environment.
Annual, supervised, amphibious assault vehicle drives through the Nu'upia ponds aboard MCB Hawaii along with the construction and management of new pond areas have improved the nesting grounds for one species found only in Hawaii. The estimated 60 Hawaiian stilts that nested at the ponds in 1982 has doubled to 135 as of January 2001, according to Dr. Diane Drigot, a senior natural resource manager with MCB Hawaii Environmental Department.
Environmental and conservation efforts at MCB Hawaii have earned the installation Department of the Navy environmental awards for the past seven years.
"Saving a Few Good Species"
In 1996, the Marine Corps, working closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, began a poster campaign to educate Marines and the public about the Corps' natural resources stewardship program. The series, titled "The Marines - We're Saving a Few Good Species," contains five posters highlighting some of the Corps successes.
The first poster, titled "These Guys Hit the Beach Everyday" emphasized how the western snowy plover and the Marines of Camp Pendleton can share the same turf cooperatively in environmentally-sensitive areas.
The Secretary of the Interior unveiled the next poster in 1998. "Operation RCW: The New Air-Ground-Team," showed the successful management of the red-cockaded woodpecker by the personnel at MCB Camp Lejuene, N.C. The third poster, "Armored Threat and Threatened Armor," featured the threatened desert tortoise and a tank at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif.
The fourth poster featured the American alligator found at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, S.C. The alligator was listed as endangered in 1967. Thanks to the Marines and USFWS working together, the alligator fully recovered and the USFWS removed the species from the endangered list in 1987, Hirsh said.
The last poster was the first to feature an endangered plant. "Small Whorled - Big Mission" shows Marines training in woods populated with the small whorled pogonia. MCB Quantico, Va., hosts the largest number of plant colonies in Virginia, said Hirsh.
The posters recognize the Marines' military training role as well as the strong ethic they have developed toward natural resource conservation, Hirsh said. The goal is to continue, in partnership with USFWS, conserving the habitats entrusted to the Corps, "while educating the public that military operations are not only compatible with species conservation, but more often than not, the mission is the very reason threatened or endangered species still exist on those lands," she added.
Reducing the Waste
Another method for reducing the Marine Corps impact on the environment is to reduce the amount of waste products Marines generate. Marines are actively encouraged to recycle everything from soda cans to office paper.
Most military housing areas throughout the Corps have some type of curbside program in place to collect recyclable material to divert this material from municipal landfills. In 2000, the Marine Corps recycled more than 67,000 tons of material that would have otherwise been sent to a landfill, said David Heinrichs, facilities engineer program manager, Facilities Branch, Installations and Logictics, HQMC.
In 2000, Marine Corps recycling programs generated more than $2.6 million in direct revenues - resulting in more than $9 million in avoided costs - by diverting recyclable material from land fills, Heinrichs said.
In 2001, the recycling program generated more than 2.9 million in revenues, he said. Marines recycled more than 58,000 tons of material, including 14,400 tons of paper, 14,000 tons of wood and 15,600 tons of metal, he added.
The Marine Corps also has a strong hazardous waste reduction program. Initiatives such as replacing chemical solvents with detergent solutions for cleaning metal parts are promoted throughout the Marine Corps. As a result, since 1993, hazardous waste disposal at Marine Corps installations has been reduced by more than 75 percent.
Maintaining realistic training while preserving the natural resources entrusted to the Corps is not an impossible mission, said Eck, but it does "requires hard work and determination."
As someone once said of Marines, "If it was easy, everyone would do it and it wouldn't be the Marine Corps."
Sempers,
Roger