NEWS RELEASE 2006-18

December 27, 2006

Air Force IRP Wins Environmental Award

The Installation Restoration Program(IRP) at Otis Air National Guard Base(ANGB) recently won an Air National Guard top environmental award.

MASSACHUSETTS Military Reservation, Cape Cod, Mass.-

One million pounds of granular activated carbon in eight treatment plants cleaned fourteen million gallons of contaminated water every day.Over thirty billion gallons treated since 1993.Over three tons of solvents and fuels removed.Concentrations of contaminants in groundwater reduced 60% program-wide.Nearly $2 million dollars saved.

An award committee at Air National Guard (ANG) headquarters near Washington, D.C. decided that these and many other Otis IRP accomplishments in environmental cleanup between 1 October 2004 and 30 September 2006 constituted the best ANG effort in environmental restoration nation-wide for 2006.The IRP won the ANG Environmental Restoration Award for Individual/Team Excellence.

The award recognizes the IRP’s years of hard work and success at MMR,” said Rose Forbes, the project manager for the accomplishments that earned the prestigious award.“The Air Force environmental cleanup program at Otis is unusual compared to most Department of Defense installations in that the scope of the cleanup efforts eclipses that of other restoration programs,” added Forbes, an environmental engineer and 13-year federal civilian employee.

The Installation Restoration Program is an excellent example of our commitment to the environment and the communities surrounding the Massachusetts Military Reservation," said Brig. Gen. Oliver J. Mason Jr., The Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard. "This award is a great achievement and I couldn't be more proud of the IRP team.

" The contamination that Forbes and her CH2M HILL contractor-team confronted was a result of past practices on the MMR going back to 1911 when the base was established.Until the 1970s there was little awareness of the harm certain chemicals could do to people and the environment.MMR organizations now tightly control the use and disposal of fuels, solvents, and hazardous materials to prevent the environmental errors of the past.

“We take our environmental obligations seriously and we believe this award is one more validation of that commitment to our community,” said Col Paul Worcester, 102^nd Fighter Wing commander at Otis ANGB. “Whether it is having well-organized and functioning industrial operations, on-going environmental clean-up support, or visionary pollution prevention efforts, our joint play with our other MMR partners is crucial to a clean Cape Cod," he said.

Streamlining operations to reduce costs and energy consumption while achieving cleanup objectives is one of the more difficult tasks in the project cleanup effort Forbes said she experienced.“This is an important goal that has to be accomplished at the same time as we expedite aquifer restoration,” Forbes explained.reductions in expenditures along with several other operational and cost savings initiatives were realized to the extent that about a $2 million burden was lifted off taxpayers.

The listed winners for the award are Ms. Forbes, as the ANG individual, and CH2M HILL team representatives Marc Slechta, program manager, Patricia de Groot, deputy program manager and technical services group manager during the award period, and Andrew Tingley, field services and operations and maintenance group manager.

“IRP had a clear vision for the program and clear directives for, and expectations of CH2M HILL,” said DeGroot, “and they also allowed for continual open dialogue and sharing of ideas.As a result, we were collectively able to achieve the goals and share successes.

”Forbes had nothing but superlatives to say about the contractor team.“CH2M HILL has been an outstanding contractor since their first operations and maintenance contract award in early 2003.They assembled a team of professionals who are all very dedicated to making the program succeed,” Forbes said.“The award would not be possible without their efforts.

”Technical accomplishments were not the only ones judged for the award.Establishing and maintaining good relations with the local community and federal and state environmental regulators were of critical importance.The IRP held many public meetings and briefings providing updates on its projects.IRP discussed specific project issues at biweekly meetings with federal Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Environmental Protection officials.

The majority of the IRP’s projects were, and still are, conducted on public and private properties in the four towns adjacent to the MMR.The IRP’s credibility with these parties was of vital importance to the organization’s ability to accomplish its environmental cleanup goals off-base.The awards committee found the IRP’s efforts to regain its credibility after years of prior distrust succeeded through continued communication with local parties.Ongoing interaction with, and participation by, residents, businesses and such government agencies as boards of selectmen, conservation commissions, departments of public works, police and planning departments of Falmouth, Bourne, Sandwich, and Mashpee, helped improve relationships and understanding.