An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Sept. 24, 2020

Turning brass into cash: Recycling program boosts revenue

By Brad Rhen Pennsylvania National Guard

FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – Service members who have spent time at the rifle range know the day isn't over until the brass is policed.

But where does it go?

Expended brass shell casings are one of the many materials collected at Fort Indiantown Gap as part of the Qualified Recycling Program. Known as QRP, it is an installation-managed and run recycling program to prevent pollution and minimizing environmental impacts.

Qualified recyclable materials are collected at Fort Indiantown Gap and other military facilities in Pennsylvania. Most are either sold directly via public sale or through established scrap sales programs. The net proceeds are deposited into the installation's QRP account.

"It's a great program," said Dreama R. O'Neal, environmental manager for the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs' Bureau of Environmental Management. "It not only recycles a lot of commodities, it keeps the items out of the landfill."

The revenue can be spent on a variety of projects and programs, such as environmental and safety projects and morale, welfare and recreation for the Soldiers, Airmen and civilians at Fort Indiantown Gap and across the state.

Expended brass shell casings that are turned in by Soldiers to the Fort Indiantown Gap Ammunition Supply Point are the top recycled material in Pennsylvania, O'Neal said. Other recyclables collected include various types of scrap metal, cardboard, office paper, aluminum cans and plastic soda bottles.

Pennsylvania National Guard maintenance groups also recycle waste oil, used antifreeze and tires.

The environmental office recycles the used antifreeze at Fort Indiantown Gap.

"We have specific equipment where we physically operate the recycling of used antifreeze and subsequently, produce good, usable, recycled antifreeze to issue back out to the maintenance community," O'Neal said.

Rather than paying a waste hauler to take used antifreeze, units can drop it off at the recycling facility and pick up newly recycled antifreeze at no cost. The recycled antifreeze is certified by the U.S. Army Petroleum Laboratory in New Cumberland.

"Most of the savings will be on the back end – the disposal costs," said Clark Romberger, a supervisor with the Bureau of Environmental Management who operates the antifreeze recycling facility. "It's considered a hazardous waste, so it can be expensive to dispose of it."

Romberger estimated the antifreeze recycling operation alone saves the DMVA about $24,000 a year.

A 20-member committee that meets quarterly oversees the QRP. It includes representatives from various offices and directorates, such as the property and fiscal office, the judge advocate general office, facilities and engineering, the training site and the environmental office.

Col. Lane Marshall, garrison commander, agreed that the QRP is a great program, especially considering all the spent shell casings that are collected at Fort Indiantown Gap, which is one of the busiest National Guard training centers in the country.

"Not only does it keep recyclable items out of the landfill and improve the environment, it brings money back to the installation that can be used for other environmental programs and for MWR programs for Soldiers and Airmen training here," he said. "It's a win-win for us."

O'Neal considers the QRP a successful program despite the need for further employee education, both at Fort Indiantown Gap and statewide.

"There are many recyclables that we are collecting; however, it needs to be explained better to the employees," she said.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Army Spc. Jazmyne Wanger, a combat medic specialist with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Pennsylvania National Guard, tends to a simulated wounded Soldier while an HH-60 Black Hawk helicopter draws near the pickup site during an air medevac exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area Oct. 11, 2024.
Pennsylvania National Guard Rehearses Air Medevac
By Capt. Leanne Demboski, | Oct. 18, 2024
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany – U.S. Soldiers assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania National Guard, participated in an air medevac exercise at...

Maryland Air National Guard Airman Faith Anderson, emergency management specialist, 175th Civil Engineer Squadron, West Virginia Air National Guard; Master Sgt. Ryan Hodges, emergency management specialist, 167th Civil Engineer Squadron; and District of Columbia Air National Guard Master Sgt. Adam Stanton, emergency management specialist, 113th Civil Engineer Squadron, practice field lab techniques during an exercise at the Blum Military Reservation in Glen Arm, Maryland, Sept. 26, 2024.
Maryland Air Guard Leads Emergency Management Exercise
By Airman 1st Class Sarah Hoover, | Oct. 15, 2024
MIDDLE RIVER, Md. - Airmen from the Maryland Air National Guard hosted a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear response exercise with regional partners at two Maryland National Guard training locations.The...

Fredrick Kennebrew, left, a mortuary affairs evaluator assigned to the Joint Test and Evaluation Program, observes fatality search and recovery team Airmen and mortuary affairs Soldiers as they practice temporary interment of simulated contaminated human remains during an exercise at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia, Sept. 11, 2024. The exercise was part of a quick reaction test to refine the techniques, tactics and procedures for managing and caring for the remains of fallen service members.
Guard Airmen, Soldiers Train To Care for Fallen Comrades
By Master Sgt. Brandy Fowler, | Oct. 2, 2024
FORT GREGG-ADAMS, Va. – For two weeks in September, National Guard Airmen and Soldiers dedicated themselves to preparing for one of the most solemn duties in the military: handling and returning the remains of fallen service...