Introduction The world has changed duringthe past 18 months. Despite thechallenges created by the tragic eventsof September 11, 2001, and the world’sresponse to the threat of internationalterrorism, stewardship of theenvironment continues to be a vitalcomponent of the Army’s mission inthe United States as well as inGermany. Indeed, in light of theincreased threats of biological,chemical, and nuclear weapons as wellas threats to civilian and militaryinfrastructures (e.g., those supportingwater and energy resources),addressing the common environmentalchallenges to the military missions ofboth countries has taken on newsignificance. The Mutual Weapons DevelopmentMaster Data Exchange Agreement(DEA) between the United States andGermany provides the framework forboth countries to exchange data onenvironmental research and technology.The research and technology areas ofinterest are defined in four individualannexes: DEA Annex 1311—Hazardous mater ia ls /mater ia lsubstitutes/ air (dealing with pollutionprevention, waste minimization,material substitutes/recovery, andrecycling); DEA Annex 1520—Soil(focusing on soil contamination and

remediation issues); DEA Annex1521—Water (including watercontamination, remediation, andpurification); and DEA Annex 1522—Demilitarization and disposal ofconventional munitions. The executive agent (DEA generalofficer) for this DOD program is theU.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of theArmy for Environment, Safetyand Occupational Health. The GermanDEA general officer is the ExecutiveDirector of the Federal Office ofDefense Technology and Procurement(Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik undBeschaffung (BWB)). U.S. andGerman deputy general officers andassistant project officers (APOs)coordinate and oversee the activitiesundertaken through the environmentalannexes. U.S. and German technicalproject officers (TPOs) and associatetechnical project officers (ATPOs) foreach environmental annex are thetechnical leads and report through theAPOs. Technical planning meetings(TPMs) are scheduled biannually toexchange technical project results,evaluate progress toward goals,coordinate future goals, and fosterrelationships. The most recent TPMtook place in Germany in October2002, and the next is scheduled forearly summer 2003 in the United

States. Additionally, general meetingsare held every 18 months, the mostrecent in June 2001 in Arlington, VA.

Meeting Challenges World events have taken a toll onour endeavors, including internationalefforts that benefit the military missionsof both the United States and Germany.In the midst of these challenges,environmental stewardship mustcontinue to support mission readinessby complying with environmental laws,maintaining the availability of traininglands, cleaning up and preventingpollution, improving soldier/familyquality of life, and strengtheningcommunity relationships. Complianceand restoration continue to be vitalcomponen t s o f t he Army’senvironmental program. Continuedinvestments in pollution preventionand conservation offer opportunitiesto reduce long-term operating costsand liabilities.

Responding To Change There have also been many recentchanges in the German and U.S.militaries requiring adjustment andflexibility to successfully proceedwith DEA efforts. The GermanMinistry of Defense (MOD) and BWBcontinue to implement fundamentalrestructuring of their organizations.

Responding To Change…

THE U.S./GERMANENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY

EXCHANGE AGREEMENTRaymond J. Fatz

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Environmental protection is acomponent of the BWB’s capabilitiesand is incorporated into its acquisitionprocess. There have also been changesin both the German and U.S. DEAleadership, which includes U.S. AirForce, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Armyparticipation. To respond to thesechanges, members of the U.S. andGerman DEA leadership met in aJune 2002 executive session toreinvigorate, guide, and direct thetechnical officers for the TPM held inOctober 2002.

Moving Forward The DEA leadership at the June2002 executive session stressed theimportance of focusing on the future.In planning for the October 2002TPM, U.S. and German TPOs weredirected to focus on current needsand to establish a requirements-drivenagenda for their activities under eachof the environmental annexes (that is,to identify real world, environmentalproblems that must be resolved). Theywere also encouraged to maximizeexisting, ongoing technologydevelopment as well as the use of off-the-shelf technologies. Additionally,they were tasked with identifying anddeveloping projects that will matchneeds, expertise, and resources across

borders. The intent is to maximizebenefits and achieve cost-effectiveinvestments.

Demonstrating Success Heavy-metals contamination is aproblem at U.S. military ranges andat German sites. As part of the October2002 TPM, participants visited thesite of an ongoing DEA technologydemonstra t ion project us ingelectrokinetic (EK) treatment ofmetals-contaminated soils. Initiatedand conducted under the auspices ofDEA Annex 1520—Soil, this GermanMOD-funded project is beingsuccessfully implemented at a NATOtraining range in Bergen, Germany.Technical expertise and review havebeen provided by the U.S. ArmyEngineer Research and DevelopmentCenter (ERDC) in Vicksburg, MS. A bench-scale test cell was usedto demonstrate how the EK processworks. Clean sand was placed in atest cell with positive and negativeelectrodes on each side of the testcell. An ionic dye was placed in thenegative side of the cell and electricalpower was turned on. The ionic dyemigrated through the sand toward thepositive electrode by the electricityalone (Figure 1). After the bench-scaletest demonstration, participants went

to the treatment site. Soil containingcadmium and chromium from thetraining area is placed in pools wherethe contaminants are removed byelectromigration. Figure 2 showsparticipants viewing one of thetreatment pools where alternatinglines of positive and negativee lec t rodes ex tend in to thecontaminated soil. Establishing a proven methodologywith reproducible results for futuretechnology demonstration projects isa key goal of the DEA. Lessonslearned to date from the EK projectare crucial to achieving this goal; thesewere discussed at the TPM and willbe applied by the DEA annex technicalplanning officers to the demonstrationof other transferable technologies. Afinal report on the results of this EKdemonstration project is expected bythe next general meeting of the DEA,tentatively scheduled for fall 2003 inGermany.

Building On Success The EK demonstration projectclearly demonstrates the effectivenessof hands-on sharing of expertise andresources to achieve a commonpurpose: solving a real world, envi-ronmental problem associated withmilitary operations. While EK tech-

The bench-scale test system used to show electrical migrationwith an ionic dye.

DEA participants view the EK demonstration site at the NATOtraining range near Bergen,Germany.

Figure 1. Figure 2.

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nology has been employed in theUnited States for a number of years,the refinement of the technologythrough this DEA-sponsored demon-stration project could result inimproved environmental cleanupstrategies both in the United Statesand abroad. There are many common challengesassociated with environmental stew-ardship for both the U.S. and Germanmilitary missions. These challengeshave created the potential to achievesignificant cost savings from jointlydemonstrated and validated technolo-gies. This demonstration and validationapproach is especially valuable in thecurrent climate of close regulatoryscrutiny and increased demands onshrinking technical and budgetary re-sources. Work is proceeding in each of theDEA annexes to identify specific prob-lems and projects for joint demonstra-tion. Once these have been identifiedand prioritized, experts and resourceswill be brought together to identifylocations for possible remediation andtechnologies for demonstration. Onceagreement is reached on these items,it is important to identify the mutualtechnical criteria that the demonstratedtechnologies must meet to achieveacceptance. Industrial, academic, andother potential sources of expertise forthe demonstration and validation pro-cess will be identified. A great deal of communication,coordination, and cooperation between

the proponents and technical expertson both sides of the Atlantic is required.This will maximize the benefit andvalue of technology demonstrationprojects for both countries under theDEA. To that end, there is increaseduse of the Defense Environmental Net-work and Information eXchange(DENIX) to facilitate and enhance theexchange of information between U.S.and German DEA executive officers,TPOs, ATPOs, and approved outsideexperts that are permitted site access.

Conclusion Over the years, the U.S.-GermanDEA for environmental technologyhas provided the opportunity to in-crease knowledge through the sharingof information and expertise. The DEAhas also helped build strong profes-sional relationships between environ-mental technical experts and thoseresponsible for meeting 21st centuryenvironmental challenges. The U.S.and German military establishmentsshare common goals of reducing envi-ronmentally related operating costs,fielding systems with minimal or noadverse environmental impacts, andbalancing available resources againstvalidated needs to achieve cost-effective investments. Activities con-ducted under the DEA will continueto enable the harnessing of each coun-try’s technical capabilities and to cap-italize on their respective strengths tomaximize environmental benefits andmaintain mission readiness.

Additional information on the spe-cific focus areas for each of the DEAenvironmental technology annexes isavailable from the U.S. TPO for eachannex, by visiting the DENIX Website, www.denix.osd.mil/ (type DEAin the Search box), or by contactingPlexus Scientific Corp. at (703) 845-8492, ext.117.

RAYMOND J. FATZ is theDeputy Assistant Secretary of the Armyfor Environment, Safety and Occupa-tional Health, and serves as the U.S.general officer for the U.S.-GermanEnvironmental Technology DEA. Hehas a B.S. degree from the Universityof Maryland and completed graduatestudies at the University ofOklahoma.

The U.S. and German military establishmentsshare common goals of reducing

environmentally related operating costs,fielding systems with minimal or no adverse

environmental impacts, and balancingavailable resources against validated needs

to achieve cost-effective investments.

This article is featured in the March/April 2003 issue of Army AL&Thttps://aim.rdaisa.army.mil/alt/home.cfm