In the early 1990s, the U.S. Army was transitioning to a new era after the fall of the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republic, commonly known as the Soviet Union. “Downsizing” was the catchphrase of the day as the Department of Defense reduced the numbers of its forces stationed in Europe. What shifted significantly was a smaller, leaner force to meet the Army’s changing warfighting doctrine.
At Fort Stewart, Georgia, Soldiers adapted to new ways of training. However, they faced a unique challenge that moved to the forefront in environmental concerns. The endangered red-cockaded woodpecker made its home in Fort Stewart’s training areas and needed minimal human interference to recover from its dwindling reproduction rate. What emerged was the Army’s commitment to balancing training with environmental stewardship. Through education and dedication, Soldiers were still able to train, yet help the woodpecker sustain its growing numbers by shying away from protected areas where the bird lived.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a significant role in supporting the Army’s environmental commitment. This year, Wilmington District biologists successfully added to the preservation of the red cockaded woodpecker at Fort Bragg by managing complex contracts with environmental consultants who specialize in endangered species like the woodpecker.
“As biologists, we look for expert consultants with proven abilities to help sustain the populations of numerous endangered species,” said Wilmington District marine biologist Teresa Russell. “We successfully contracted a well-established environmental consultant with extensive knowledge of the nesting and reproductive habits of the red-cockaded woodpecker in various areas of North Carolina and South Carolina.”
Russell said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers supports military installations with in-house and contracted support for help with wetlands delineation, Section 404 and 401 of the Clean Water Act for permitting, agency coordination support and cultural resource surveys.
“We work with the Department of Public Works (DPW) environmental managers and the installation to ensure that the protected species, wetlands and waters and cultural resources that exist within military installations are recognized and properly managed and accounted for and mitigated for if impacts do occur,” she explained. “It's all about finding the happy balance of providing the installation customer with the development or building that they need, while avoiding negative impacts to the environmentally sensitive areas where possible. I feel that through good communication during the design and construction phases and strong team work we are able to execute the majority of projects the installations need while keeping the impacts to environmental and cultural resources to a minimum.”
Russell added that another success story was efforts to help an endangered plant at the Military Ocean Terminal at Sunny Point (MOTSU) called the rough- leaf loosestrife (Lysimachia asperulaefolia).
“Each plant has a specific role that can add to the overall effectiveness of a functioning ecosystem,” Russell said. “We do a lot of paperwork in our jobs and coordinate with numerous consultants, but we also get out in the field for hands-on work with such endangered plant species like the rough-leaved loosestrife. Our backgrounds are varied in environmental science, biology and marine biology, and it adds to our effectiveness of upholding the Corps of Engineers’ Environmental Operating Principles of being good stewards of the environment.”
| Date Taken: | 01.11.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 11.29.2018 11:54 |
| Story ID: | 301627 |
| Location: | WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 59 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Wilmington District's Environmental Section Managers Help Balance Environmental Concerns on Military Installations, by Lisa Parker, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
