NADEP achieves ISO environmental certification

The Naval Air Depot North Island participated in the recently concluded Department of Defense pilot study for International Standards Organization (ISO) 14001, to prototype and implement an Environmental Management System (EMS). NADEP North Island has become the first DoD organization to be ISO certified.
Based on Executive Order 13148, “Greening the Government through Leadership in Environmental Management,” new waste reduction goals and new environmental requirements have been established for federal facilities. One of these requirements is to conduct an environmental management self-assessment and to implement an EMS.
“The management system we implemented is truly unique and has received many positive comments from experienced environmental management system professionals in both the private and public sector,” said Ray Paulson, Code 6.8.3.3, environmental engineer at NADEP North Island.
The NADEP EMS is focused on continual improvement for environmental performance, including pollution prevention. Not only is it cost-effective, but it uses existing management procedures to the greatest possible extent, minimizing new efforts required of the organization.
Under the EMS, the shop and shop support areas are held accountable for environmental compliance and other plant functions relevant to an EMS. To ensure the shop and shop support areas are in compliance, internal audits are performed once per quarter.
Paulson pointed out that a key to the success of the NADEP EMS is the use of customized intranet-based software, permitting multi-user access from selected computers. This allows any user to input proposed improvements, and allows others to comment and complete the required data for a management decision.
“This particular EMS software will work as a continual improvement management tool for any functional area, such as environmental, safety, quality, etc.,” he said.
Even before the establishment of the EMS at NADEP North Island, facility personnel felt confident about the effectiveness of their many pollution reduction and environmental compliance efforts. Since the implementation of the EMS, new areas for environmental improvements have been identified and solutions implemented. Improvements include cost savings and environmental compliance by re-calibrating the scrubber wash down cycle and re-designing the cleaning room.
“The EMS implemented at NADEP has been beneficial to the organization and the benefits outweigh the costs to maintain,” Paulson said. “This approach truly minimizes the traditional EMS efforts while providing a tool for continual improvement.”