HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah -- The Air Force recently announced its 2024 Air Force Civil Engineer Award winners, and Hill Air Force Base’s Environmental Branch picked up top honors in two categories.
The base received General Thomas D. White Awards for Natural Resources Conservation and Environmental Quality – Industrial Installation.
The Environmental Branch at Hill manages numerous programs, including air and water quality, the hazardous material and waste program, solid waste management. Branch Chief Amanda Burton said it is because of the hard work and mission support the team members provide the base that they were recognized as best in the Air Force.
“We are absolutely thrilled and honored to receive the prestigious General Thomas D. White Award,” Burton said. “This award belongs to each member of our team, and we are incredibly proud of everything we have accomplished together.”
The base’s Natural Resources Program not only manages habitats for the 7,000 acres of the base, it also manages the 958,000 acres of the Utah Test and Training Range. The unit has projects in preservation and conservation, grounds management, agriculture and forestry, and community outreach. It even has projects outside the base, including managing trails at the Outdoor Recreation’s Carter Creek Campground in the Uinta Mountains.
“This incredible recognition is a testament to the unwavering dedication, innovation, and hard work of our entire natural resources team,” said Nick Brown, natural resources manager. “This award motivates us to reach even higher as we continue our mission to protect and preserve our precious natural resources while sustaining the military mission into the future.”
The awards were named for the fourth chief of staff of the Air Force, Gen. Thomas D. White, who was a visionary military leader and a brilliant scholar who helped bring the Air Force into the space age. According to an Air Force press release, the winners depict the highest levels of Air Force Civil Engineering, and represent the “ingenuity, talent, and relentless dedication that is at the core of the civil engineer community.”
Hill’s environmental teams will be presented the awards at the 2024 Air Force Civil Engineer Awards Banquet on March 5 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.