AEDC prepares for environmental audit Published Nov. 19, 2010 By Patrick Ary AEDC/PA ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- Environmental engineer Keith Carnley said the Air Force Materiel Command will send in auditors to review Arnold Engineering Development Center's environmental management system during the second week of December. They won't be auditing data systems, according to Carnley. Instead, they will assess how AEDC's Environmental Management System maintains compliance with environmental rules and regulations, and how the work force at AEDC is educated when it comes to environmental awareness. "It's more of a program philosophy," Carnley said. "It's the things we do to make sure we're complying with environmental laws and regulations and minimizing our impact of our daily activities on the environment." As the current environmental policy states, AEDC is committed to sustaining mission capability while integrating sound environmental practices. AEDC's Environmental Management System includes educating every member of the work force, so everyone thinks about the environmental impact of what's done at the base, Carnley said. In addition, the system includes an aspect inventory list where potential impacts on the environment are reviewed on a regular basis. That way, Carnley said, workers can find out whether their actions put AEDC's environmental compliance at risk, especially when the laws and requirements change. Part of this overall approach is the Environmental Compliance Assessment and Monitoring Program (ECAMP). It starts with a list of protocols and checklists that environmental workers go through to make sure we are not out of compliance with any regulations. "It's a significant effort, involves a lot of folks and requires support from senior management all the way to the shopkeeper," Carnley said. The AFMC auditors have already given notice of some of the specifics they'll be looking for, Carnley said, and his department is preparing to give them the documents they will want. Some specific areas will be hazardous materials management and how workers deal with hazardous waste. The audits happen about every three years, and Carnley said auditors will look for areas of improvement. His group will be ready. "We had some findings (last time), and the majority of those findings were closed within 30 days of the visit," he said. More information regarding AEDC's EMS program can be found on the Environmental Management Web page at https://aedcgisweb.arnold.af.mil/enviro/ .