Sustainable Range Technologies support military readiness by managing and maintaining training ranges so that Soldiers are able to train and continue to train for years to come. USAEC has the mission of providing technologies that are sustainable while considering the environmental impact. USAEC's Sustainable Range Technology Program supports technology development in all aspects of range sustainment. This includes technology from the development of new munitions through the ultimate disposition of unexploded ordnance (UXO) found on ranges, as well as implementing technologies to ensure the long-term use of training lands.
Many diverse projects make up the Sustainable Range/UXO Technology Program. All are aimed at understanding how we can best manage our testing and training ranges to preserve air and water quality and prevent erosion while keeping our ranges open and ready for testing and training.
Sustainable Range Technology Project Highlights
Fate and Transport of Munitions Constituents Programs
Emissions Characterization Program and Munitions Emissions Health Risk Assessment Program
USAEC's Environmental Health Risk Assessment Program, created in collaboration with the U.S. Army Public Health Command, (formerly the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventative Medicine) measures air emissions from munitions and evaluates subsequent potential health effects to off-site residents. Individual munitions are fired in a closed training facility and state-of-the-art sampling techniques are used to determine the presence and measured levels of over 280 chemical species and particulates. These tests are conducted using over 220 munitions items including:
The data from these tests may be used to support, define, and possibly modify future Army training and testing practices. Since the beginning of the Munitions Emissions program, the Army has worked with the EPA to ensure the program produces scientifically defensible emission factor data for the munition items used on training ranges; therefore, the EPA has accepted USAEC's munitions emissions data for publication in the EPA's Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors, also known as AP-42.
Health Risk Assessments are developed for each munition item tested, using an air dispersion model to determine hypothetical emissions exposure levels for residents 100 meters downwind from a given training area.
The Health Risk Assessment Program is beneficial because of its use of current empirical emission data, and because the program is not modeled on any one training facility, ensuring the data results will be applicable to any Army facility using these munitions. All Health Risk Assessments published thus far have indicated that there is minimal, if any, potential inhalation risk to off-site residents.
Additional Resources: Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors (USEPA AP-42)
UXO Corrosion Rates
USAEC recognizes the Army's growing need to comply with regulations regarding potentially environmental impacts of UXO. Environmental restrictions imposed on military personnel due to UXO contamination can hinder training, and therefore soldier and warfighter readiness. USAEC, in collaboration with its teaming partners, designed a program for military range managers to assess UXO corrosion and munitions-related compounds on their installations. From this assessment data, USAEC developed the UXO Corrosion Model to help estimate the number of years to perforation of user-specific thickness of metal. Because the corrosion modeling technique uses parameters, assumptions and constraints were built on the data received from range managers, the program is widely applicable and beneficial. The program also draws data from soil samples containing concentrations of explosives collected beneath 161 ordnance items; and data collected from 14 sites where the UXO age is well-constrained and a variety of environmental conditions exist such as soil type, aqueous conditions, and pH.
Additional Resources: UXO Corrosion Rates Fact Sheet
Munitions Constituent Replacement Programs
Perchlorate Replacement
USAEC, in conjunction with the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center's (ECBC) and Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM), supports Army readiness by developing alternatives and replacements for perchlorate in pyrotechnic devices used during training. To this end, USAEC and its partners have developed a program to replace the perchlorate in two commonly used training simulator items, the M115AZ Artillery Simulator and the M116A1 Hand Grenade Simulator. These two simulators together are the source of two-thirds of the perchlorate released into the environment on military training ranges. Developing material substitutes for these two devices significantly reduces the potential environmental and human health risk, and encourages the elimination of perchlorate in other commonly used pyrotechnic devices. As part of this program, the photoflash powder – the explosive charge inside the pyrotechnic device that contains perchlorates – will be replaced with a perchlorate-free alternative composed of black powder and aluminum. This alternative, and other alternatives developed in the future, will be less easily dispersed into the environment, reducing potential risk and mitigation costs.
Additional Resources: Perchlorate Replacement Fact Sheet, Perchlorate What you need to know
Smoke and Dye Replacement
The DoD currently faces increased regulatory enforcement of munitions emissions during military training and testing operations, such as emissions from signal smoke devices and other pyrotechnic devices. To comply with regulations, USAEC and its collaborative partners created an innovative program to assess the environmental impacts and health risks associated with these emissions, and implement material substitutions for those munitions that are identified as emitting toxins in significant quantities.
As a result of this program, a number of environmentally preferably material substitutes and alternatives have been identified for toxic munitions items including sugar-based fuels and reformulated, less toxic dye mixtures. These alternatives meet all military standard criteria including color comparison, emissions, inhalations and toxicity requirements.
Additional Resources: Smoke and Dye Replacement Fact Sheet
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
NEPA Categorical Exclusions
USAEC is developing categorical exclusions (CXs) to streamline NEPA compliance for routine Army test mission activities. To comply with NEPA regulations, Army installations typically prepare records of environmental consideration (RECs) for routine actions that meet the requirements of existing CXs, and do not necessitate full environmental assessments or environmental impact statements. If no CX exists for a proposed action, then that action may require a full environmental assessment to be written, even though no significant environmental effects will result. This extends cost, labor and time needed to complete the proposed action. Many routine test mission activities and Environmental Quality Technology (EQT) program designs meet CX criteria, and therefore USAEC's CXs for test and evaluation activities will allow efficient NEPA compliance for these routine actions and decrease the cost and time of unnecessary compliance measures.
Small Arms Range Programs
Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Small Arms Ranges
During normal range use, lead and other metals from spent rounds may contaminate soils. This contamination can impact local watersheds, and create possible environmental and work-related health issues associated with range operation and maintenance. USAEC developed the Army Small Arms Training Range Environmental Best Management Practices (BMPs) Manual for Army installations to identify the potential for metal munitions constituents transport and erosion concerns associated with routine training activities at operational small arms firing ranges. The BMP Manual contains evaluation procedures, range operation and management strategies, and recommended range modifications as low-cost, easily feasible approaches for small arms range sustainment.
Using the BMP Manual, range managers can select the best BMPs for individual small arms ranges to proactively prevent lead migration and pollution, thereby decreasing the cost and, range downtime, of removal and mitigation of metal contamination
Additional Resources: BMP Manual, Best Management Practices for Small Arms Range Design
Environmental Guidance for Shoothouses
USAEC, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Sustainable Range Program and the U.S. Army Training Support Center created The Environmental Guidance for Live Fire Houses, Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain, and the Urban Assault Course/Combined Arms Collective Training Facility. This manual is a reference for installation and range personnel to use in the planning, designing, site selection, operation, and maintenance of live fire shoot houses, Urban Assault Courses and Combined Arms Collective Training Facilities to ensure soldier safety and environmental compliance.
The Environmental Guidance for Shoothouses does not address state or local regulatory requirements, and only addresses a portion of Federal environmental, safety and occupational health requirements. Therefore use of this manual should not preclude consultation with installation environmental, safety and legal staff during facility planning and design.
Technology Transfer
Technology Transfer Workshops
USAEC is the Army's point organization for implementing environmental programs that facilitate Army training and operations while protecting the environment. USAEC conducts workshops at installations to mitigate environmental challenges on training ranges, therefore benefitting soldier readiness. USAEC partners with many DoD counterparts to develop and apply innovative environmental technology and up-to-date environmental guidance that supports the long-term viability of training and testing ranges. USAEC also partners with the Military Munitions Response Program to ensure that workshops present installations with a variety of the latest technologies to remove Munitions and Explosives of Concern (MEC) and remediate potential health and environmental hazards.
These workshops concentrate on the following:
Additional Resources: Technology Transfer Fact Sheet
Training and Maneuver Area Sustainability
Environmentally Compliant Range Designs
Increasing environmental compliance requirements, resulting from stricter environmental regulations, impact the use and capabilities of Army ranges and training fields. Existing range designs may not protect Army range land from environmental degradation, and may not ensure compliance with current environmental regulations. USAEC is developing improved range designs and retrofitting existing range designs whose elements are at high risk of noncompliance with new environmental regulations. Environmental compliance mitigates cost impacts, decreases range downtime, and ensures missions readiness.
USAEC has developed environmentally compliant range design specifications and guidance for:
USAEC's range design specifications are available to all Army installations and will be eventually incorporated into Standard Army Designs. Environmentally compliance technologies currently in use on Army ranges will also be incorporated into Standard Army designs.
Wear Tolerant Vegetation
Intense use of installation land and training ranges, and heavy tracked and wheeled vehicular traffic, can lead to significant vegetation damage on military lands. Vegetation damage and loss leads to erosion, loss of topsoil, decreased land carrying capacity, and decreased training realism for soldiers. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Engineer Research and Development Center – Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (ERDC-CRREL) began researching and breeding grass species with increased establishment and seedling vigor, and developing "ecological bridges" composed of native and desirable introduced grasses.
USAEC's used this research to produce the Intermountain West Military Lands Planting Guide, which provides DoD land managers with recommendations and planting guides for vegetation that helps reduce land wear, control erosion, prevent weed invasion, control fire and maintain line of site during training.
Additional Resources: Intermountain West Military Lands Planting Guide, Wear Tolerant Fact Sheet, Research improves vegetation on training lands
UXO
MMRP
The Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP) addresses the potential safety, health, and environmental risks caused by Unexploded Ordnance, Discarded Military Munitions and Munitions Constituents from past training and DoD munitions related activities. Previous attention has been paid to restoring active and future range sites with potentially hazardous contaminants, but the MMRP now also focuses on addressing the challenges presented at sites located on other than operational ranges. Munitions responses are response actions, including investigation, removal actions and remedial actions that address the explosives safety, human health or environmental risks associated with these sites.
Additional Resources: Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP)
Standardized UXO Technology Demonstration Site
The US Army Environmental Quality Technology (EQT) Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) Technology Program uses and funds standardized demonstration test sites located at Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), Maryland and Yuma Proving Ground (YPG), Arizona. These test sites provide demonstrators an opportunity to demonstrate and validate their UXO detection and discrimination systems in a controlled environment, where inert UXO has been buried.
UXO characterization technologies can be affected by variations in site terrain, geology, vegetative cover and weather conditions encountered, and as such the two test site contain challenge areas such as woods, blind grid, open field, convex mogul scenario, desert extreme area and concave moguls scenario. The diversity of these testing sites allows users to gather data on sensor and system performance, compare results, and document realistic cost and performance information for specific UXO technologies in a variety of scenarios applicable to actual installation training ranges.
Additional Resources: Aberdeen Proving Ground, Scoring Records, Standardized UXO Technology Demonstration Fact Sheet, Standardized UXO Technology Demonstration, Yuma Proving Ground
UXO Technology Implementation
USAEC is developing, testing and implementing UXO detection technologies that support the Army's Range Modernization Program to build and modify ranges to maintain a trained and ready force. The Range Modernization Program requires construction on tracts of land that have been previously used for training and therefore may present health and environmental hazards due to UXO. USAEC's UXO detection technologies, and range design and construction recommendations can help minimize the cost of UXO detection and removal during range construction. These technologies may also accelerate planning and construction schedules and improve safety during range clearing and construction. USAEC's technologies include:
Additional Resources: Fort Bliss UXO Technology Demonstration Article, UXO Technology Implementation Fact Sheet, UXO Robotics Article, UXO Robotics Video