Air Force and Homestead celebrate Earth Day

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  • 482nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HOMESTEAD AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  HOMESTEAD AIR RESERVE BASE, Fla. - As millions of people around the world observed Earth Day April 22 this year, the Air Force is challenging every member of the Air Force family to do his or her part to conserve natural resources, minimize waste and prevent pollution.

"I challenge all Airmen to think about pollution prevention in new ways," said Gen. Norton Schwartz, Air Force chief of staff. "We all need to understand that we can make a difference in managing waste so we can find cleaner, more cost effective ways of accomplishing our mission."

Like Homestead ARB, installations across the force are taking aggressive strides to enhance sustainability and cut costs.

Homestead ARB has many environmentally friendly technologies all around. For example, the base has solar lighting on the pedestrian spine, base operations uses solar power to power the "Giant Voice" and many of the personnel drive solar powered golf carts. Water reuse technology is also used at the base. The vehicle wash facilities at both Transportation and the Base Fire Department are equipped with water recycling units which filter and then reuse the same wash water to wash more vehicles.

Homestead ARB also uses something called a Hydro-Cartridge, a hydrocarbon and sediment filter which is inserted into storm drains on base. While not noticed by the base populous, this device helps the base prevent sediments and oily runoffs from entering Biscayne National Park, thus protecting the fragile ecosystem of coral and sea grass there.

One endeavor the Air Force has undertaken to improve sustainability is by modifying current processes to incorporate innovative, environmentally friendly technologies.
The Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, is leading efforts to reduce the pollutants and heavy metals currently involved in stripping paint from Air Force planes. Tom Naguy, senior program manager for environment and energy in the AFRL's materials and manufacturing directorate, is overseeing the project. The robotic "de-painting" system uses a laser as an effective and environmentally safe alternative to existing processes.

Strategic reuse of products and materials, where appropriate, is another way the Air Force is slashing costs and controlling its waste stream.

Hill AFB, Utah, is saving money and simultaneously reducing hazardous waste by implementing solvent filtration systems which allow multiple re-use of cleaning solvents used for aircraft parts, said Guy Whalen, environmental representative for the Commodities Maintenance Group there.

The Air National Guard's 187th Fighter Wing in Alabama successfully conserved energy by recovering all of its contaminated JP-8 fuel for use in aircraft ground equipment, said Lt. Col. Elmer Norvell, base civil engineer there.

At Homestead they have a reuse (free issue) area at the base hazardous materials pharmacy and recycling center where employees can find many items that are still usable.

Even seemingly small changes can have large repercussions.

Implementation of a moving box exchange service at Fairchild AFB, Wash., resulted in the reuse of six tons of moving boxes and a savings of $5,000 for base personnel.

"I call upon every Airman to re-think how we approach waste in the Air Force," said Terry Yonkers, assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and logistics who recently visited Homestead. "As the Air Force becomes leaner, we need to reduce the burden of waste disposal costs that impact our budget. Ask yourself what you can do to be a little greener and leaner in your workplace."

Substituting non-hazardous and environmentally friendly materials for hazardous ones is another way the service is going green. Such product replacements not only create a healthier environment for personnel, but also reduce the need for hazardous material disposal.

For example, a conversion from steel break assemblies to carbon brake assemblies at Fairchild has led to a reduction in hazardous waste.

According to Senior Airman Kera Tracy, aircraft hydraulics system journeyman from the 92nd Maintenance Squadron at Fairchild, the pucks that help make up the brakes are made up of many metals including arsenic, cadmium, lead, copper, zinc and selenium. Some of these metals are very hazardous and can cause major health concerns in addition to environmental contamination.

"We discovered the impact the brake repair had on the environment when our mop water was tested and found to have high levels of cadmium," Tracy said. "Our mop water then became hazardous waste and a program was made in the shop for proper disposal."

Between 2005 and 2006, the base began the process to convert to carbon brake assemblies and now all of their KC-135s are equipped with the new brakes, Tracy said.

"At Homestead we are basically at a level in which it is hard to substitute anymore," said Mr. Larry Ventura, 482nd Fighter Wing Environmental Flight chief. "Once we even had a private firm conduct a survey to identify hazardous materials that could be substituted for non-hazardous materials. The survey showed that we had already reduced our hazardous waste as much as we could - of course, we still keep looking!"

Recycling is another means of preventing pollution and diverting waste.

Like many installations the recycling program at Homestead is well known. In fact the innovation of the program was detailed in an article in the last issue of Civil Engineer Magazine. Homestead's 2011 solid waste diversion rate of 72% far exceeded the Air Force goal of 40%. In conjunction with Earth Day, the recycling center hosted an elementary school for a base environmental tour. A similar type of tour was conducted back in November for America Recycles Day.

"One of the most rewarding aspects of the program is not only giving back to the community by hosting these students, but also in giving back to the men and women of Team Homestead by donating $90,000 to the Services organization over the last two years," said Ventura. "Part of this money went into the creation of the Blazin Beans Coffee Shop."

To learn more about recycling at Homestead ARB contact Mr. Timothy Driscoll at timothy.driscoll.3@us.af.mil.

Construction projects are also incorporating several energy-saving features, with many of the buildings qualifying for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification.

"Civil engineers are building sustainable installations every day," said Maj. Gen. Timothy Byers, the Air Force civil engineer. "We are focusing on being smarter, faster, better and cheaper; we are reducing waste, conserving energy, and building leaner, more sustainable facilities because we know these efforts not only support the environment, but also save money and improve our mission capabilities."

To help emphasize the importance of individual efforts, the Air Force is promoting a "Blue Acts of Green" social media page. Team Homestead members and their families are encouraged to visit the site at www.facebook.com/blueactsofgreen to commit to perform an act of "green" at home or work to benefit the environment and prevent pollution.