Army Europe workshop balances training, environment in Italy

Udine, Italy -- Meeting operational training demands while protecting the environment was the topic of the US-Italy Sustainable Training Area Management workshop held here, Sept. 20.

Sponsored by U.S. Army Europe, the one-day event brought together officials from the Friuli Venezia Giulia regional government along with military and civilian representatives from the Italian Army FVG regional Command, U.S. Army TRADOC and the 7th Army Training Command and Italian army units from Vicenza.

"This workshop is in preparation of the comprehensive session of June 2017 which will have strategic importance for a theme that is very dear to us, that is how to balance the requirement for military training with the required safeguard of the environment," said FVG councilor for Infrastructure and Urban Planning Mariagrazia Santoro.

Topics for discussion in the workshop agenda included a report on the 2016 Integrated Training Area Management, the 7th Army Training Command range development plan for Italy, and an overview of the 2017 U.S. Army annual training plan for Italy. The officers from the Italian Army Northeast Command briefed an update on training and infrastructure maintenance planned in the FVG region.

"I wish to thank the U.S. Army for giving environmental considerations as much weight as possible," Santoro told workshop participants, highlighting how the seminar is an excellent outlet for the U.S. Army in Europe to explain to the community, both Italian and American, "the value placed on environmental compliance and stewardship of host nation land."

She also lauded the seminar initiative for actively engaging military and civilians in an effort to build relationships and define an approach that allows military training while maintaining good training land stewardship.

She explained that the level of biodiversity displayed in some local training areas is so significant that in 2001 they were designated as European Flora Fauna Habitat. Today, thanks to the strong partnership between the U.S. Army and the regional Italian authorities, discussions are ongoing to gain access to a larger number of sites for training Italian and U.S. forces.

"Training in the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region is fundamental for the U.S. Army in Italy. Over the last few years, we have worked closely with the region's civilian leadership to ensure we are taking all possible steps to safeguard the environment in our execution of military training," said Peter Brownfeld, host nation political advisor for the U.S. Army in Italy.

"Environmental stewardship of Italian training areas used by the U.S. forces is critical to sustaining military training for future generations of Soldiers," said Nate Whelan, program manager for the United States Army Europe Integrated Training Area Management program.

"Meeting the tenets of the U.S. Army's Sustainable Range Program -- integrated management, information excellence and outreach -- will strongly support the long-term sustainability of the training areas," said Whelan, who recognized that the challenge is to ensure that the many stakeholders, military and civilian, are proactively involved to further sustainability so that they can be good environmental stewards of the military training areas.

"Protection of the environment is key to the value of the training area itself," said James V. Matheson, chief, Regional Training Support Division South. "If we were to damage the environment, then the training area would no longer be effective for training."

Asked about the importance of the area for sustaining readiness, Col. Umberto D'Andria, Italian base commander from Vicenza, said that: "the FVG region offers unique opportunities for sites and training areas, "along with the fact that U.S. Army units and Italian army brigades are headquartered relatively close to each other, which absolutely adds to the value of joint training."

"The attention on environmental issues shown at all levels of authority in the planning, programming and organization of training activities is absolutely praiseworthy and indicative of a wise and modern approach," said D'Andria.