Courtesy Photo | The Hazardous Material team at NAVSUP FLC San Diego Site Ventura proudly stand...... read more read more
A Navy unit in Ventura, Calif., was recently recognized for their efforts in reducing the impact of hazardous material on the environment and to the health of human beings.
NAVSUP Fleet Logistics Center San Diego Site Ventura took the lead as the testing site for the Naval Supply Systems Command Weapons Systems Support (NAVSUP WSS) initiative called Navy Environmental Sustainability Development to Integration (NESDI). The initiative is a pilot program aimed to minimize and standardize HAZMAT by using cleaners that are considered “green” and less hazardous to the environment or human health. Navy LT. Martin Soto-Perez, supply operations officer for NAVSUP FLC San Diego Site Ventura, owned the program and in coordination with NAVSUP WSS Hazmat Pollution and Prevention, he reviewed and updated DoD’s Authorized Usage Lists (AULs), conducted awareness training for all customers, and monitored 1,826 material requests to lead customers to greener alternatives.
Soto-Perez, along with a team of four civil service employees, identified products that were comprised of hazardous chemicals and found “Safer Choice” or green products as replacements. In the past, when a customer would submit a request to purchase HAZMAT cleaners, there were no identified options to purchase green, sustainable products in lieu of traditional cleaners. That changed once Soto-Perez and his team added green products to the AUL with the assistance of NAVSUP WSS Hazmat Pollution and Prevention Division giving customers better options. During the initiative, however, if a customer didn’t used a “green” cleaner it was either because the material maintenance card directed them to a specific military specific cleaner or because the cleaner alternatives were more expensive and they had budgetary constraints. Due to the success of the program, 121,407 new green products are available to Naval Base Ventura County’s customers and a significant, positive impact on the environment has been achieved. The result was a 1,400 percent increase in the purchase of sustainable cleaners. In comparison, the year before, the base ordered zero green cleaners.
The efforts of Site Ventura’s HAZMAT Team directly contributed to Naval Supply Systems Command, Weapon Systems Support (WSS), and the Navy, being presented the EPA’s 2019 Safer Choice Partner Award.
From the moment Soto-Perez was requested to lead the project, he became personally invested to ensure its successful completion.
“When the initiative started, I had significant personnel and manning shortages, but I understood the importance of making sure we did our part to ensure a cleaner, safer environment – not just for the base but for our local community,” he explained.
Now that the initiative has proven to be a huge success, the program will be replicated in other installations to minimize the Navy’s footprint on the environment.
“Being here in California, I understand how well-regulated the environment is and I am proud of the work that we’ve done to help protect the environment. It gives us [and the Navy] peace of mind that products with hazardous chemicals will no longer get into the water or soil and if something happens like a spill, you know it’s not going to kill the fish or harm the environment.” He stated.
The Hazardous Material Control and Management (HMC&M) and Pollution Prevention (P2) Department of NAVSUP WSS maintains regulatory compliance for hazardous material (HAZMAT) located at more than 70 Navy installations worldwide and promotes P2 supply initiatives through the reuse, reduction, and substitution of HAZMAT across the Navy.
The EPA’s Safer Choice program was developed in 1997 and draws upon chemical and environmental expertise from across EPA. Safer Choice uses the technical tools and expertise of EPA’s New Chemicals Program to evaluate the environmental and human health impacts of every chemical ingredient in a product, allowing only the safest ingredients in certified products. As a voluntary partnership program, Safer Choice brings all interested parties together to advance sustainability in chemical products. Safer Choice currently certifies about 2,000 products. Safer Choice-certified products help consumers and commercial buyers identify products that meet performance standards and are made with safer ingredients.
“It’s amazing and quite impressive the number of customers who intentionally choose Safer Choice products over traditional products,” Soto-Perez said. “It goes to show just how much the Navy, and our customers truly care about the environment.”
NAVSUP FLC San Diego is one of eight FLCs under Commander, NAVSUP. Headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and employing a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel, NAVSUP's mission is to provide supplies, services, and quality-of-life support to the Navy and joint warfighter. Learn more at www.navsup.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/navsup and https://twitter.com/navsupsyscom.
| Date Taken: | 10.20.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 10.20.2020 17:38 |
| Story ID: | 381362 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 156 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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