Commentary: ESOHCAMP team coming to town

  • Published
  • By Paul Scoggins
  • 100th Civil Engineer Squadron
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  You may have already heard the term "ESOH inspection" or "ESOH-Camp" in the past few weeks. Hopefully, after reading this article you will have a better idea of what that is and what it will mean to you and the 100th Air Refueling Wing.

From March 8 through 12, a U.S. Air Forces in Europe team will be here to conduct an environmental, safety, and occupational health compliance assessment, or ESOHCAMP. The purpose of the assessment program is to determine where we stand with regard to compliance on those programs.

For those who may or may not know, non-compliance in any of these areas can lead to a potential regulatory notice of violation and even fines in some cases.

The USAFE-led assessment team is designed to identify those program areas that may be non-compliant in order to correct them. The team will assess those programs pertaining to flying and ground safety and environmental and occupational Health.

Employees should be familiar with those AFOSH standards and environmental regulations that pertain to their particular jobs. Not only that, but where actions are required such as inspection's or training, those things must be thoroughly documented, typically on forms such as the Air Force Form 55, Safety and Health Record of Training.

I believe it has been proven most recently, during our ORI experience that there is a safety conscious attitude here in our wing. We certainly need to continue to keep that going as a part of our daily practice.

Another relatively new program that will again be evaluated this time around is compliance with the Environmental Management System which is governed by EO 13423, "Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy, and Transportation Management".

This is again where we must walk the talk.

Each individual at the wing must know that we have a Wing Environmental Policy statement which outlines responsibilities in protecting the environment. Through this executive order and our wing EMS program, we have identified key aspects where we intend to focus our efforts on environmental improvements.

Those areas deal with:

Energy and water conservation,
Reducing hazardous waste generation,
Reducing vehicle emissions,
and improving recycling efforts.

All of those efforts must become part of the daily culture as people go about doing their jobs here in the wing.

Lastly, this is an assessment where the USAFE team will be out visiting each of the work areas. First impressions are lasting impressions. It goes without saying that you should give them your utmost respect and answer their questions when you have the knowledge to do so. If not, tell them you will get back to them with an answer. Follow through on your promises.

You know your job better than any other, so it is time to shine when the assessors come your way. So the next time you hear someone talking or asking about the ESOHCAMP, now each of you can help them get informed, prepared, and in-compliance.