MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Local vendors brought Earth Day awareness to Camp Pendleton, in front of the 11 area Country Store, April 18. Multiple booths were set up, providing valuable information for Marines and residents of Camp Pendleton.
“We use this day to have exposure to the Marines and public, and tell them what we are doing on base is lowering the over energy consumption,” said Sidney Mohseni, the resource efficiency manager at Tetratech.
Pendleton shows its commitment to lowering energy use by beginning to change all of the incandescent light bulbs to compact florescent light bulbs. Approximately 77 percent of energy used for lighting can be saved by switching out the 100 watt incandescent light bulbs with 23 watt compact florescent light bulbs and still have the same amount of light. “Environmental considerations have a significant impact on our mission as a Marine Corps, both directly and indirectly,” according to Marine Administrative Message 222/12. “Earth Day offers us a chance to reexamine the way we do business in consideration of our environment. Sound practices that consider and minimize our environmental impacts serve to minimize our logistics footprint, reduce our operational costs, ensure the health of our forces and enhance force protection.”
Camp Pendleton strives to effectively conserve energy through a number of different strategies. One of these strategies is to produce some of its own electricity through photo voltaic systems. An example of this technology is the solar panels on Camp Pendleton’s new bachelor enlisted quarters.
Camp Pendleton is also the home of a photo voltaic farm that has been producing electricity for more than a year, said Mohseni. The farm is located at the Box Canyon Landfill on base and produces about 1.45 mega-watts.
Approximately 400 residential homes can be powered by 1.45 mega-watts produced on the photo voltaic farm on base. The total capability of photo voltaic energy on Camp Pendleton is close to 5 mega-watts.
“The solar panels and photo voltaic farm is only phase one to our two phase project,” said Mohseni. “There will be another equal size system that will hopefully go into effect by summer 2012.”
The MARADMIN also states, “As a fighting force, we recognize the interdependence of our mission, the environment, and the communities in which we operate, both at home and abroad. Good environmental stewardship protects the condition of and access to the training areas that are integral to making Marines. It also allows future generations of Marines and our surrounding communities the same benefits from our planet that we enjoy today.”