The Secretary of the Army recognized Fort Bragg, N.C., as the winner of the first Secretary of the Army Sustainability Award March 26. This new award, together with the Secretary of the Army Environmental Awards, recognizes outstanding sustainability initiatives by Army installations/activities and individuals. These initiatives enable the Army to meet current and future needs while improving its ability to organize, equip, train and deploy Soldiers.
Mr. Tad Davis, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Environment, Safety and Occupational Health, noted that many of our Soldiers, Civilians and contractors routinely accomplish sustainability successes worthy of recognition. "From our installations to our forward operating bases, the Army is working to establish sustainability as a long-range vision that enables the Army to meet its mission today and into the future," Davis said.
Fort Bragg received the award for installation/activity. The North Carolina post piloted the first installation sustainability program for the Army in 2000. Over the next four years, Sustainable Fort Bragg served as the blueprint for The Army Strategy for the Environment, setting the benchmark for the Army's sustainability values. The strategic planning process at Fort Bragg is the starting point for fostering an installation-wide Army sustainability ethic.
Mr. Paul Wirt, Chief of the Environmental Management Branch at Fort Bragg, received the award for individuals. Mr. Wirt was one of the original participants in the earliest Army discussions on how to incorporate the principles of sustainability at military installations and volunteered Fort Bragg to be the pilot installation for the new initiative. He was also a key contributor to the Army Strategy for the Environment.
"Soldiers must have the land, water, air, and energy resources they need to train, a healthy environment in which to live, and the support of local communities and the American people," said Davis. "We are building green, buying green, and going green to advance the triple bottom line plus of Army sustainability: Mission, Environment, and Community, plus cost savings, innovation and collaborative solutions."
Nominations were evaluated against five criteria: fosters a sustainability ethic; leverages partnerships; strengthens Army operations and minimizes impacts and total ownership costs; drives innovation; and potential Army-wide applicability.
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