Depot Achieves Environmental Management System Certification

By Jo Adail StephensonNovember 17, 2009

Depot Achieves Environmental Management System Certification
Depot Environmental Division employees (from left to right) Tim Barrett, Steve Van Dyke, Todd Williams, Nathan White, Ramesh Melarkode, Ray Southard, Brent Congleton, Phillip Williams, Desiree Lovelace, Tim Robinson, George Gentry and Allen Gilbert p... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Blue Grass Army Depot recently achieved a significant milestone with its International Organization for Standardization ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management System (EMS) certification.

ISO 14001:2004 is an environmental management system used to actively manage continual improvement with an overall goal of minimizing significant mission and environmental impacts.

"Our environmental scope is fence line to fence line on this installation. I'm extremely proud of the dedication and untiring efforts of Blue Grass Army Depot's employees to continually improve the environment, maintain compliance with environmental laws and regulations and sustain pollution prevention on the Depot's 14,500 acres," said Depot Commander Col. Joseph Tirone.

"Good environmental management enables BGAD to provide a full range of ammunition and support services to the joint warfighter, reduces environmental impacts and maximizes efficient and effective use of BGAD resources," Tirone said.

EMS is the way the Depot manages all of its environmental responsibilities. The Depot also uses EMS to identify and control the environmental impact of its activities, products or services.

"We are not just looking at operational compliance, we are also looking at the broad picture of environmental impacts - water, air, waste, natural resources and cultural resources. We're never perfect but we're striving for continual improvement in conformance with standards and compliance with the law," explained Steve Van Dyke, Depot environmental protection specialist.

Todd Williams, Depot environmental division chief, said, "Environmental management is everyone's responsibility who comes onto the Depot. It's knowing the possible causes of environmental impact and understanding the Depot's requirements and procedures to manage the environmental activities of its workforce and its tenant organizations. It's about continually being good stewards of the environment while maintaining the Depot's mission requirements."

Blue Grass Army Depot continues to achieve other milestones with environmental management projects it has submitted as a master member of KY EXCEL (Kentucky Excellence in Environmental Leadership Program). KY EXCEL is Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection's voluntary environmental leadership program that allows participants to increase their environmental commitment and reduce their environmental footprint through the completion of voluntary environmental projects.

Since becoming a KY EXCEL master member in September 2006, the Depot has partnered with federal, state and local agencies as well as universities and colleges in its environmental management system efforts to protect the environment, protect the health of the Depot's workforce, prevent and reduce pollution, comply with federal and state laws and Army regulations and conduct the installation's missions in the most effective and efficient manner possible.