When Master-at-Arms 1st Class Dalia Corredor began supporting her command’s Earth Day Clean Up efforts, she wasn’t just continuing an annual tradition.

The Earth Day Clean Up organized by the First Class Petty Officer Association at Navy Medicine Readiness Training Command Bremerton, April 21, 2023, reinforced the long-established environmental stewardship legacy of the command.

“I took part because I hate seeing garbage. I always do a perimeter check as part of my Physical Security checks and there is a lot of wildlife. Some of the trash we leave can be hazardous to them,” said Corredor, who teamed up with Logistics Specialist 2nd Class Andrea Markey and Logistics Specialist Seaman Tyler Thompson to patrol the grounds for discarded trash.

The facility is more than just a military treatment facility. Under the administration and management of the Defense Health Agency, with the surrounding grounds overseen by Naval Base Kitsap, it is a crucial part of the local west Puget Sound ecosystem. The command is bracketed on all sides by a diverse collection of community neighbors and there has been a continual commitment to conservation efforts over the years.

To the north is a number of residential homes. To the south is The Landings, a public/private venture for military family housing at Naval Base Kitsap. To the west is John D. “Bud Hawk” Elementary School. To the east is the Ostrich Bay portion of Dye’s Inlet, and Suquamish Tribe lands.

Wildlife abounds the 49 acres of the command. Eagles nest. Deer forage. Even the occasional black beer has been spotted.



NHB environmental stewardship over the years has allowed staff, patient and visitor to enjoy the grounds which feature a healing garden and nature trail. Trees have been planted. Invasive foliage trimmed. Access roads and parking lots maintained.

There have also been a host of modifications over the years – many of them small – adding up to a greater ecological good inside as well as outside.

According to Robert Mitchell, environmental program manager, the primary focus for this year has been on hazardous waste reduction improvements.

There are a host of common hazardous materials used in any healthcare facility, from cleaning chemicals to biomedical waste.

The command has a robust waste reduction program to collect and return what the Food and Drug Administration classifies as ‘single used devices’ from the Main Operating Room. Instead of disposing such devices as arthroscopic wands and shavers, laparoscopic instruments and ultrasonic scalpels as medical waste, they are now being recycled at a rate of almost one ton per fiscal year.

“Coordination with the Main Operating Room resulted in reducing 200 pounds per month of biomedical waste disposal during the safe collection and reprocessing of single use devices such as sharps instruments,” Mitchell stated.

Various non-invasive medical devices are also recycled, such as compression sleeves, pneumatic tourniquet cuffs, and ECG lead wire and cables. At one point in time, those items – and more - were disposed of as solid waste, with associated costs and environmental impact. They have even removed hazardous waste material items no longer needed or now considered redundant.

“By only having useable hazardous material on hand is important to know what potential spill/release could happen and having the proper personal protective equipment and spill response material ready,” explained Mitchell. “Under the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s ‘Right to Know’ Act each staff member has the right to know what they are exposed to in the workplace. Knowing exactly what is there helps to decide training and storage needs.”

The environmental stewardship awareness includes energy-saving, enhancing specific systems to help protect the local ecosystem and even recycling used material to provide to others in need.

The Facilities Engineering Division instituted a Solid Waste Diversion water foundation project to reduce the use of disposable plastic drinking water bottles. The project has been a success. Installed bottle fillers in 14 drinking fountains have resulted in ecofriendly benefits. Just one filler dispensed the equivalent of almost 200 bottles of water in one work week, in theory keeping those 200 bottles out of recycle bins, trash cans and landfills.

Other recent completed projects include adding quarterdeck lighting controls, occupancy sensors in the main hospital and Family Practice wing restrooms, and steam plant boiler upgrades from 80 percent to 94 percent efficient condensing boilers. Those improved boilers have efficiently enhanced the ventilation, heating and cooling systems for the main hospital building.

The environmental management team also added occupancy sensors for exam rooms, offices, and Family Practice waiting lobby lighting controls and efficient recessed interior LED lighting for elevator lobbies. All designed to save energy.



Mitchell also notes that the dental clinics have practiced conservation consistency by keeping toxic metals from dental wastewater out of Puget Sound.

Dental staff were trained on the installation and maintenance of chairside amalgam filters in treatment rooms used for amalgam restoration in compliance with Navy Medicine’s mercury control program and Washington State Department of Ecology policy on dental wastewater management. The command was able to remove a redundant amalgam separator system. This change saved the command $10,000 annually for eliminating the need to collect and dispose dental wastewater at the Bangor dental clinic.

Other environmental stewardship projects included the Terrace Dining Facility switching to eco-friendly take-out containers from Styrofoam, which was the only option during the 2020-2022 pandemic. By eliminating the polystyrene-based products, the command effectively cut back on trying to recycle approximately 120 take-out container orders that also included cups, and salad/soup bowls.

Along with initiatives to recycle, reprocess and recover, there have also been creative individual efforts in helping care for the environment.

The blue muslin wrap used as garments in the Main Operating Room used to be destined for a landfill after being discarded. The wraps are made of polypropylene, a form of cloth-like plastic which is water resistant, insect resistant, and retains heat. Yet once the sterilized blue wrap is worn, it can’t be reused due to stringent sterilization standards and manufacture guidelines.

During the pandemic, Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Cozzette Baldwin came up with the idea to recycle those wraps by making them into sleeping pads, tote bags, even face masks, and donating to those less fortunate.

Internally, as well as externally, the command continues to adhere to ecological principles.

“This [Earth Day Cleanup] is important because we should take care of our facility and our environment,” stressed Corredor. “Especially if we want it to last for us and for future generations.”