By REBECCA WALKER
NAS Patuxent River Public Affairs Department

PATUXENT RIVER NAVAL AIR STATION, MD-With the Chesapeake Bay Watershed right in Naval Air Station Patuxent River's backyard, usage of its waters and surrounding environs is part of the facility's daily operations. Because the station relies so heavily on the bay, Patuxent River personnel realize how important it is to keep it thriving, ensuring a clean and healthy environment.

One measure Patuxent River has recently taken to keep the Chesapeake Bay flourishing is becoming a member of the Businesses for the Bay, a voluntary pollution prevention program conceived to prevent pollution and reduce the amount of chemicals released into the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

The organization is made up of a team of industries, commercial establishments and small businesses within the watershed which are dedicated to implementing pollution prevention in their daily operations.

During membership sign-up, each facility chooses and commits to pollution prevention activities and follows up with annual progress reports. Some examples participants sign up to support are:

· Developing annual pollution prevention goals, ranging from training employees in pollution prevention to reducing the volume of chemicals used at the station facility;

· Setting a measurable reduction in station use/generation of toxic chemicals;

· Employing technologies for in-house recycling of station production material.

Patuxent River is involved in many of the Businesses for the Bay suggested activities, said Mark Luncher, Operational Environmental Planning Office program manager.

"The Navy is already reducing toxic substances throughout the lifecycle of our aircraft," Luncher said. "Patuxent River is playing an active role in that process as well as smart facility management to promote good environmental stewardship."

Providing "mentors" is another activity Patuxent River has committed to as a part of Businesses for the Bay. These mentors will serve as a peer-to-peer "question and answer" resource for business, industry and others, completely outside of the regulatory arena. Already, two mentors have been chosen at Patuxent River - Lasandra Teeters from the Public Works Department and Kyle Rambo from the Natural Resources Department.

As a member, Businesses for the Bay will recognize Patuxent River's positive activities on station through periodic press releases and individual recognition through certificates acknowledging progress in pollution prevention.

An opportunity to apply for annual Excellence Awards for small, medium and large businesses is offered yearly, as well as access to more than 100 other mentors representing the participating members.

Patuxent River joins 300-plus other organizations that make up Businesses for the Bay such as: the U.S. Naval Academy, the National Aquarium in Baltimore, the Northrop Grumman Corporation, the U.S. Navy Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Division and the U.S. Army Aberdeen Proving Ground.

"The Naval Air Station Patuxent River is one of five Department of Defense facilities in Maryland to join Businesses for the Bay," said Laura Armstrong, pollution prevention coordinator with the Maryland Department of the Environment. "We appreciate their early participation in this program and hope other federal facilities in Maryland will follow their lead."

Patuxent River gained membership in fall of 2000. Since 1997, Businesses for the Bay participants have reported the reduction and recycling of 1.87 billion pounds of materials, amounting to savings of $9.9 million. In Maryland, this amounted to 1.1 billion pounds of materials and $6 million of savings.

"These numbers are testament to the fact that a "prevention first" approach works and saves money," Armstrong said.

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