Conserve today. Secure tomorrow

  • Published
  • By Renae Fischer
  • 14th Civil Engineer Squadron
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  This year marks the 42nd anniversary of the first Earth Day. Born out of a grassroots movement to encourage awareness of the growing air and water pollution, Earth Day has evolved into an international celebration of our commitment to protect and conserve the Earth's natural resources. Over 190 countries will commemorate Earth Day with tree plantings, litter patrols, recycling efforts, water and energy conservation demonstrations and many more activities aimed at helping to conserve Earth's natural resources.

As trustee to more than 8 million acres of land, water and air assets including more than 234,000 acres of wetlands, 570,000 acres of forested landscape, 200 miles of preserved coastline and home to some 70 threatened and endangered species, Air Force installations must work every day to conserve resources critical to the mission.

We are doing our part at Columbus Air Force Base. Our recycling program not only diverts an average 40 percent of waste from local landfills, but saves $250,000 in landfill costs each year. Columbus also established numerous goals to reduce facility energy, water and fuel consumption, while increasing the purchase of environmentally-friendly products and use of alternative fuels, such as biodiesel and ethanol. In fact, since Columbus AFB made the switch from diesel to a biodiesel blend in 2007, we've reduced air pollutants by 33 percent and traditional fuel usage by over 10 percent. These reductions may seem small, but Air Force-wide the impact is magnified.

As of January 2012, the Air Force was ranked number one in the Department of Defense for renewable energy, second in the federal government and number 15 among 1,300 Green Power Partners. These accomplishments are phenomenal considering the Air Force maintains over 100 bases in at least 12 countries.

"Conserve Today. Secure Tomorrow" is the Air Force Earth Day theme this year. It's reflective of our understanding that our actions to protect and conserve our natural resources today will ultimately help to ensure a sustainable and secure future for our mission to "Fly, Fight and Win."

More information on Earth Day and environmental/energy initiatives can be found on the official AF Earth Day website http://www.af.mil/earthday.asp.