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Environment Top Priority for NAF Key West Pollution Prevention Team

Navy NewStand

Story Number: NNS030318-13
Release Date: 3/18/2003 3:26:00 PM

By Journalist 2nd Class Mark Schultz, Naval Air Facility Key West Public Affairs

NAVAL AIR FACILITY KEY WEST, Fla. (NNS) -- Three Naval Air Facility (NAF) Key West employees were recently selected winners of the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) 2002 Environmental Award for Pollution Prevention in the team category.

The pollution prevention team of Ron Demes, Darrell Dye and Bill Adkins took a proactive approach in facility management, helping NAF Key West earn the Florida Clean Marina Award.

NAF Key West was the first federal installation to earn this award and is part of only one percent of Florida marinas to achieve the designation. The Boca Chica Marina was also the first installation to be approved on initial inspection.

The three prevention team members were challenged with retaining and maintaining native habitats in and around the Marina, which is surrounded by the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary.

The Boca Chica Marina repair/expansion project was already approved for funding when the team learned of the Clean Marina Program.

"The Clean Marina Program was discovered about half-way into the design phase; that is when we decided to include clean marina designation requirements within the marina design," said Demes, former public works director of engineering. "When I found out that no other federal installation had received the award, I jumped on the opportunity to have NAF Key West be the first."

Along with the Clean Marina initiative, the team incorporated removal of invasive exotic plant species, which included hundreds of Australian pine trees.

"We live in a very sensitive, unique ecosystem which supports a variety of endangered species. It is imperative that we minimize impacts on our natural environment and re-establish as much as possible of the environment destroyed by development. This mind set is consistent with the Navy's commitment to achieve base sustainability," said Demes.

Receiving the CNO Environmental Award was not easy work.

"We had a lot of help along the way," said Dye, then Morale, Welfare and Recreation director. "It was a great effort on the parts of several people and organizations."

Putting in countless hours of personal time, the Pollution Prevention team worked "to achieve a net positive impact to the environment," said Demes.

"Ron Demes and I went to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to get training," said Adkins, marina manager.

At this training, they learned what it would take to meet the requirements of construction in 'Outstanding Florida Waters', the most restrictive regulations Florida has. To build in this pristine harbor, "NAF had to show no net degradation of water quality," said Demes. "We had to show that there were more positives in building a larger marina than there were negatives."

"By implementing strict management controls for marina operations and a relentless effort to educate residents and transient users, visitors are in awe and are duly impressed with how tight a ship we run down here," said Demes.

"The environment is at the top of the list," said Adkins. "Boaters are very cooperative with the new environmental regulations and protecting the marine environment at Boca Chica Marina."

"We look forward to maintaining the quality that we've established and hope we can be an example for others to follow," said Dye.