Norfolk Naval Shipyard's (NNSY) Environmental Restoration Program Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) held their annual site visit at St. Julien's Creek Annex in Chesapeake, Virginia, May 24.

A RAB was established in 1999 to educate the community about environmental restoration (ER) activities at St. Julien's and encourage community involvement in the decision-making process.

The RAB consists of members from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, NNSY Public Works Department, Navy Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC), City of Chesapeake Environmental Quality Services Division, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, CH2M - a company that provides environmental consulting services, employees at the annex, and members of the surrounding community.

During the visit, RAB Co-Chairman Walter Bell thanked the group for their part in helping St. Julien's achieve the 2016 Chief of Naval Operations Environmental Award in the Environmental Restoration, Installation category.

This award recognizes the combined efforts to protect the environment and promote quality of life without compromising mission success, according to Bell.

NNSY went on to receive the 2016 Secretary of the Navy Environmental Award in the same category.

In July 2000, St. Julien's was added to the National Priorities List (NPL) as a result of former operations which impacted the environment. Of the 59 identified sites, 56 were determined to require no further action under the ER Program following desktop audits, site inspections, and/or removal actions.

Last August, St. Julien's celebrated a significant construction complete milestone which encompassed some 36 years of dedicated work in investigating environmental contamination and ultimately restoring seven sites marked for cleanup.

A facility typically achieves the construction completion milestone when physical construction of removal action or remedial action is complete at the entire facility, immediate threats are addressed, and long-term threats are under control.

Currently three installation restoration sites remain actively monitored under the ER Program for things such as land use controls, contaminant investigations and groundwater remediation.

"We [the U.S. Navy] do not take care of the environment in a vacuum," said Cmdr. Roland DeGuzman, assistant operations officer for NAVFAC, Mid-Atlantic, and a Chesapeake native. "I am proud to have been a part of this group for the last five years and what it has accomplished."

"I am thankful for the RAB's continued involvement, because it really can't work without their participation," he continued.

St. Julien's Creek Annex is a Navy facility that began operations as a naval ammunition facility in 1849. The current primary mission is to provide a radar-testing range and various administrative and warehousing facilities for local naval activities.

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