DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 



WETLANDS PROGRAMS 



PROGRAM STRUCTURE 



Overall responsibility for DoD's environmental programs is 

 with the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) , which issues 

 Department directives, instructions, policy memoranda and other 

 Department-wide requirements. 



Each Military Service is responsible for implementing OSD 

 policy. Wetlands management rests with each Service's natural 

 resources division. 



Each Service has a different organizational structure. The 

 Army and Air Force both are organized by function through major 

 commands; e.g. the Army's Training and Doctrine (TRADOC) Command, 

 and the Air Force's Tactical Air Command (TAC) . The Air Force 

 also has three Regional Civil Engineering offices, which are 

 responsible for intergovernmental coordination. The Navy is 

 organized regionally by Engineering Fiel " Divisions. The Marine 

 Corps, a part of the Navy, manages its natural resources programs 

 directly from Headquarters. 



Day-to-day operations are normally conducted by each 

 installation's natural resources manager, through its engineering 

 office. 



Land acquisition and disposal, and related actions such as 

 conservation easements, are assigned separately within DoD to 

 each component's real estate division. A Base Realignment and 

 Closure (BRAC) office oversees activities in this area. 



WETLANDS PROGRAMS : 



1. Resources Management ; DoD manages its nearly 25 million 

 acres of military lands for multiple use and sustained yield. 

 Integrated natural resources management plans are required for 

 all lands under DoD control. 



2. Agreements : DoD enhances its wetlands protection program 

 through interagency and private agreements. For example, the 

 Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is updating or preparing new fish 

 and wildlife management plans for 15 DoD installations, in 

 conjunction with a cooperative agreement under the North American 

 Waterfowl Management Plan. A 1988 agreement with The Nature 

 Conservancy enabled Vandenberg AFB, California, to plan, produce, 

 and implement a coastal dune management plan for the entire 55 

 mile Nipomo/Vandenberg dune and wetland complex. 



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