Employees from the Directorate of Base Operations, Tooele Army Depot, are in the running for the 31st Annual Secretary of the Army Energy and Water Management Award. Richard Anderson, Russell Smalling, Victor Hammond, Jon Hayden and Joshua Jones worked together on a Green Belt project to locate and repair broken water lines throughout TEAD, which should save the depot more than $60,000 in fiscal 2009.
"In October of 2007, water production at the Depot increased unexpectedly by an additional five million gallons," said Jay Weyland, TEAD energy manager. "We couldn't figure out what had caused the increase, and therefore suspected broken water lines. Several methods were used to search for the water line breaks, but they were ineffective."
The Green Belt Team then suggested using a method new to TEAD, the LD-12 Professional Plus Leak Detector, to locate the leaks.
"The (LD-12) amplifies the sound that a water leak makes, allowing the operator to locate the water leak precisely," Weyland said. "The team made a series of sound level measurements, and from those measurements they located and repaired several water leaks."
There were 12 water leaks identified in total, with the last leak repaired in September 2008. More than 40 million gallons of water were saved in the first six months of fiscal 2009 when compared with the same time frame the previous year. "At this rate, we expect to save over eighty million gallons of water this fiscal year," Weyland said.
Weyland nominated the group for the small group award category in water conservation. If announced as the winners, there is a cash award that the team members will share for their hard work. "These guys did an outstanding job in conserving water," Weyland said. He added that it is important to recognize people for these types of accomplishments because it may inspire others to find other ways of conserving energy.
"Conservation saves us money, adding to the quality of life for our employees," said Col. Yolanda Dennis-Lowman, TEAD commander. "What's also a benefit is the personal satisfaction of being conscious about where our dollars are being spent. When everyone makes some effort to conserve it adds up to a greatly reduced drain on Earth."
Each year, the Army recognizes individuals, groups and organizations that have made a significant impact in the area of energy and water conservation. The winners for the 31st Annual Secretary of the Army Energy and Water Management Award will be presented their awards in August.
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