2013 NPS Environmental Achievement Awards

Winners

Rene Ohms, Physical Science Technician

Park Location: Jewel Cave National Monument

As chair of the Jewel Cave National Monument Green Team, Ms. Rene Ohms has led the way in helping the park green its operations, and has changed how park employees view the importance of sustainability.

In FY12, Ms. Ohms oversaw the completion of greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories which allowed the park to achieve Milestone 2 of the Climate Friendly Parks (CFP) Program. To reduce costs, Ms. Ohms utilized an in-park volunteer to enter all the GHG inventory data into the NPS Climate Leadership in Parks Tool.

Additionally, Ms. Ohms led the effort to complete a modified environmental management system (MEMS) and a CFP Plan for the park—the last milestone in achieving CFP member status. As a result of Ms. Ohms’ efforts, the park has achieved member status in the CFP program.

Furthermore, Ms. Ohms continues to educate and motivate not only employees at Jewel Cave, but employees at other parks in the Black Hills region of South Dakota. She organized and led two CFP workshops for the park and eight other parks in the Black Hills. The workshops were a great success, and helped all the parks get closer to achieving CFP member status.

Due to her efforts, Jewel Cave National Monument has become a champion of sustainability in the NPS. Through leadership and education, she has shown that a single employee can help meet the park’s own sustainability and climate change goals, as well as the established servicewide goals.

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Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Green Team

Park Location: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a pioneer in the development of a hybrid environmental management system (EMS) called an Integrated Environmental Plan (IEP). The IEP, developed and maintained by the park’s Green Team, combines, streamlines, and simplifies environmental management and the reporting of sustainability and environmental management efforts. The benefits of the IEP include:

• Less time spent administering environmental actions and more time spent accomplishing them;
• More effective data collection and reporting;
• • Better scientific input into park decision making regarding environmental management and sustainability priorities; and
• Thorough discovery of synergies among different park program areas.

In 2012, the Green Team made substantial progress in integrating the IEP into all aspects of park operations. The Green Team provided orientation training for all park staff on the IEP and showcased several goals that the park had accomplished the previous year. In addition, the Team created a webpage that makes the entire plan available on the park’s internet site. The webpage also contains links to documents, plans, other regulatory and reporting websites, training requirements, and more.

With support from the park superintendent and division chiefs, the Team guided park staff to meet substantial, measurable, and meaningful park-wide goals including, but not limited to:

• Reducing energy use at Meyers Beach and Stockton Island vault toilets through the installation of solar powered vent fans and lights;
• Removing propane ovens and offering solar ovens to save energy and reduce fuel transport costs at remote island locations; and
• Reducing or eliminating the need for herbicides to control invasive plant species during restoration projects by restoring native plants at disturbed landscapes.

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore’s Green Team continues to work with park staff to protect the natural and cultural resources of Lake Superior’s archipelago and shoreline. The Green Team efforts should serve as a model for environmental management at other parks, as it demonstrates the National Park Service’s commitment to sustainability.

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Kalaupapa National Historical Park Green Team

Park Site: Kalaupapa National Historical Park

In the past, the majority of solid waste generated at Kalaupapa National Historical Park was disposed of at two onsite landfills managed by the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH). Only about 20 percent of materials were being recycled.

Through a cooperative agreement with the DOH, solid waste operations at the park have been transferred to the NPS. This transfer of duties to the park produced an integrated solid waste management system, developing and encouraging appropriate solid waste disposal alternatives such as recycling and composting, results in minimal impacts to the land, water, and people of the island.

In 2012, the park’s Green Team implemented the program producing the following results:

• Recycled 193,413 pounds of materials including not only common items like aluminum and bimetal cans, glass, paper, cardboard, and plastic, but also less common items such as e-waste, clothing and furniture.
• Desposed a variety of construction, demolition, hazardous and non-hazardous waste.

Because of these efforts, the park's municipal trash diversion rate for FY2012 is estimated to have been about 85 percent, quadrupling the rate from past years. Additionally, the increase in recycling has motivated park staff to seek sustainable practices beyond recycling at work and at home. Team members have been approached on ways to further reduce waste through composting, alternative transportation, powering-down electronics, and reducing paper generation.

The Kalaupapa National Historical Park Green Team has committed to resource stewardship through proper waste disposal management—including recycling, reuse, composting, and proper hazardous waste disposal. Their efforts should serve as a model for solid waste management at other parks, as it demonstrates the National Park Service’s commitment to sustainability.

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Mammoth Cave National Park Team

Park Location: Mammoth Cave National Park

In 2012, Mammoth Cave National Park completed a number of significant sustainability projects. The park:

• Adopted Call to Action Goal #23, “Go Green.” For this goal, the park committed to reducing its carbon footprint and showcasing the value of renewable energy to the public. The park intends to double the amount of renewable energy generated within the park and by park facilities;
• Received one of the first grants through the Department of Energy Clean Cities/National Park Initiative to replace old vehicles with new, more efficient alternative fuel vehicles. The park marked these vehicles with a “flowering flame” emblem to draw attention to alternative fuels;
• Significantly expanded the recycling program through the commitment of park and partner employees;
• Used LED bulbs in all helmet/headlamps, reducing battery use by 85% when compared to use of conventional light bulbs; and
• Completed renovation of the visitor center. The reconstructed visitor center is a model of sustainable design that is on track to be LEED certified at the gold level. The center includes the following design elements:
  • A 29 kilowatt photovoltaic (solar) power system;
  • Almost all of the building is constructed of local materials from within 500 miles of the park;
  • 60 percent of the wood used in the visitor center comes from certified sustainably managed forest;
  • Counter tops are made of bamboo, a rapidly renewable material;
  • Natural light reaches virtually every room in the visitor center; and
  • A 30,000-gallon cistern captures rainwater off the roof of the building for reuse in flush toilets.

Mammoth Cave National Park’s efforts should serve as a model for sustainability projects at other parks as it demonstrates the National Park Service’s commitment to energy conservation and reducing the servicewide carbon footprint.

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Delaware North Parks & Resorts, Concessioner

Park Location: Yosemite National Park

Two years ago, Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts (DNC), concessioner at Yosemite National Park, initiated a project to look into using relatively clean burning waste vegetable oil (WVO)—taken directly from their restaurant fryers—to power a diesel truck. Research was conducted to determine the pros and cons of running diesel engines on WVO and to assess the availability and reliability of kits to covert diesel engines to use this biofuel.

After the viability of the project was confirmed, DNC purchased a Ford F350 diesel truck and a WVO conversion kit from a California company specializing in WVO technology. The truck was converted by DNC’s mechanics in winter of 2012. During this period, a WVO dispensing station—the first of its kind in the park—was set up at DNC’s Garage. Two WVO collection points were established at DNC restaurants: Curry Village Grill and Yosemite Lodge Food Court.

To promote the use of WVO and educate DNC staff, DNC invited employees to participate in a contest to name the WVO truck and create a logo. The winning name, “Fryer Truck,” and a specially designed logo were applied to the truck.

In 2012, 300 gallons of WVO were diverted to power Fryer Truck, helping to offset the total 8,000 gallons of WVO generated. DNC’s Recycling Department now uses the truck to collect recyclable materials at DNC operations throughout the park. In addition, WVO is provided to NPS Roads and Trails Branch staff and others who operate vehicles powered by biodiesel. The process of using a locally derived waste product makes this fuel as close to carbon neutral as possible.

DNC’s efforts to provide a locally-derived alternative fuel to power their fleet should be considered a model for other concessioners with operations that generate significant amounts of WVO.

DNC’s commitment to waste reduction and environmental protection has led to significant environmental benefits to Yosemite National Park and the surrounding communities.

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Grand Canyon North Rim, LLC, Concessioner

Park Location: Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park

In 2012, Grand Canyon North Rim, LLC (GCNR), concessioner at Grand Canyon National Park, completed a project to install new technologies that will reduce and divert waste material generated by their operations, focus waste management, and promote creative employee actions.

This project was initiated when GCNR investigated food waste digester technologies that were available for hospitality operations operating in national parks. The investigation identified a new method of organic waste digestion. Before implementation of the plan, it was discovered that there were compatibility issues with the park’s wastewater discharge and treatment system. However, by working through these challenges using laboratory analyses, discharge rates, and even operational considerations, the new food digester was accepted and installed at North Rim.

Eventually, it was determined the treatment unit was not large enough to support the amount of food waste being generated by GCNR, so it was replaced with a more advanced and robust system. During this same year, GCNR began exclusive use of “biodegradable” service ware which could be discarded into the digester for disposal, further reducing landfill waste and eliminating the need for waste segregation.

Achievements included:

• Diversion of 89 percent of food waste from the landfill at a cost savings of over $50,000 annually; and
• Elimination of over 132 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent greenhouse gas emissions from diverting the waste from the landfill.

In addition to reducing food waste sent to the landfill, GCNR installed a fully functioning, hand-sorting, waste handling center that removes all recyclable material from the waste stream. This, along with the organic waste diversion, increased their overall waste diversion rate to nearly 100 percent.

GCNR has developed a waste diversion system that should serve as a model for other large concession operations in national parks. Their waste reduction efforts have led to significant environmental benefits to the park and the surrounding communities.

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Xanterra Parks & Resorts, Concessioner

Park Location: Mount Rushmore National Memorial

In 2012, Xanterra Parks & Resorts, concessioner at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, took a comprehensive approach to improving sustainability. Xanterra installed a water refill station; added three new recycling program options; transformed an unsuccessful composting operation into an effective program; retrofitted its lighting units to energy conscious, environmentally friendly LED and compact flourescent light bulb units; and by offering more sustainable food options for both employees and visitors.

All facets of Xanterra’s operations at the park—the Sustainability Department, Food and Beverage Operations, and the maintenance crew—were involved in these efforts. The results of these efforts include:

• Removing an estimated 30,000 plastic bottles from the annual solid waste stream through the use of the (quite popular) water filling station—an estimate based on 2011 sales (equal to between 830 pounds. and 1,250 pounds of plastic, depending on the size of the bottle and the manufacturing timeframe);
• Diverting just over 2,800 pounds of mixed paper and 698 pounds of electronics from the landfill through enhanced recycling;
• Significantly improving the composting operation that now supplies quality compost to Xanterra and park employees, the Xanterra garden, and local residents.
• Increasing sustainable food purchases so that now about 40 percent of Xanterra’s food and beverage purchases at the park are from sustainable, organic, and/or local sources.

The noteworthy sustainability improvements of Xanterra Parks and Resorts have led to significant environmental benefits to Mount Rushmore National Memorial, to park visitors and employees, and to the surrounding communities.