Small Investments with Big Results - DoD's Emerging Contaminants Directorate's New Approach to Improving Safety and Health

摘要

The paper discusses the Department of Defense's (DoD's) approach to addressing the impact of emerging contaminants (ECs) on health and the environment. DoD, through the recently formed EC Directorate (ECD), is moving towards life cycle, risk based approaches to improve human health, environmental protection, sustain mission capabilities, and reduce the total burden on the taxpayer. The ECD accomplishes these goals through early action rather than relying on a compliance-based approach. The EC initiative implements processes that: 1) inform DoD decision makers on emerging contaminants critical to the mission, 2) document a life-cycle business case for earlier engagement and 3) identify options for reducing risks. The EC initiative implements a framework, processes and organizational approaches that promote both horizontal and vertical integration of the agency's programs and budget decisions. Through the EC initiative, the DoD is better positioned to assess future compliance costs and include them in system life-cycle cost estimates. The EC initiative ensures that environmental cost considerations are built into design of DoD products and overall feasibility determinations. Thus, the EC initiative improves mission by better protecting human health and the environment while enhancing military readiness.