Environmental Management System successes

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman David Dobrydney
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  When one hears the term EMS, they might think Emergency Medical Service.

In this case, however, it stands for Environmental Management System.

Mandated by executive order, the EMS stretches across all federal agencies. The USAFE Environmental Management System was established in 2005.

The goal of the EMS is to organize environmental responsibilities and reduce environmental impact while minimizing risk to the mission and sustaining operations.

In the relatively brief time the EMS has been functional, it has already led to successes.

"We've had a great recycling initiative," said Billy Claxton, 48th Civil Engineer Squadron Environmental Management chief. "Between [2006 and 2009], we had a 20 percent reduction in solid waste."

Mr. Claxton added that this exceeded the goal set by the EMS by five percent and the goal was met one year ahead of schedule.

Another success has been the start of a $500,000 project to replace six air conditioning units that were using obsolete, ozone-depleting substances at RAF Feltwell.

The most important part of getting that project going was the people, said Mr. Claxton.
"That is the success story for the EMS; being able to get people together to progress a project," he said. "It's everybody's program."

Beyond any one project, Mr. Claxton hopes that people will come to think of environmental responsibility the same way they think about safety.

"Everyone is safety-oriented, so one of our goals is to get to that level," he said.

"It starts with the people in the shops reducing their hazardous waste and turning off the lights when they leave the room. The little things add up and ultimately enhance the mission by minimizing the cost of electricity and disposing of waste."

Kathi Hailey, 48 CES environmental engineer, offered some examples of small changes that are yielding dividends, such as the 48th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. The 48th AMXS recently changed out the lamps in their handheld flashlights to LED bulbs. This saved 50 percent of the flashlight's battery life, reducing the amount of discarded batteries and the money spent buying new ones. Additionally, the Auto hobby shop contracted with a local tire recycler to remove unwanted tires, further reducing the hazardous waste the base is responsible for disposing of.

Ms. Hailey said each unit has an environmental manager. If an Airman wants to suggest an idea for improving waste management, they can go to their unit manager or contact the Environmental office at 226-3990.