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IN THE MILITARY

Army National
Guard honored for
environmental
awareness, training

By Gregg K. Kakesako
Star-Bulletin

The Hawaii Army National Guard's environmental program has been singled out as being the best in the military.

The Hawaii program was recognized for protecting a wide variety of wildlife species and "promoting sustainable practices in land use," while providing realistic training at its 34 sites.

The award will be made on April 26.

Lt. Col. Ron Swafford, Hawaii Army National Guard environmental protection specialist, said the Guard owns 8,000 acres on five islands, the largest being the 5,000-acre Kanaio Training Area in upcountry Maui.

The Hawaii Army National Guard's "scientific research, identification and active protection of the endangered animal and plant species on the Hawaii training areas and the safeguarding of archeological sites are exemplary," said Maj. Gen. James Donald, U.S. Army Pacific deputy commanding general.

"This total Army conservation of resources will ensure that the Army can continue to have the training areas which are so vitally necessary now and into the future," he said.

The land managed by the Hawaii Army National Guard contains at least 33 rare, threatened or endangered species and five distinct habitat types.

Nearly 40 percent of all plants and animals on the endangered species list reside in Hawaii.

Hawaii's program was first chosen as the best in the Army system in the category for installations on less than 10,000 acres, before being singled out for the top honor among all military programs.

The selection was made by a panel of Department of Defense and nonmilitary natural resource management experts, including representatives from the Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

One of the programs cited by the judges was the Hawaii Guard's efforts to combat invasive plant and animal species that are major threats to the island's endangered native species. The Guard participates in a partnership with the Maui Invasive Species Committee, a group of 20 private, local, state and federal agencies.

The panel of judges noted that, where necessary, the Hawaii Guard has worked to restore specific species in extreme danger, recovering 11 rare or endangered plant species by erecting fences and performing selective weeding and seed collection.

MOVING UP:

Camp Smith: Maj. Gen. Michael Hagee, U.S. Pacific Command director of strategic planning and policy, to lieutenant general and assignment as commanding general I Marine Expeditionary Brigade.

Hawaii Army National Guard: Col. Clarence Agena, Hawaii Army National Guard deputy adjutant general, to brigadier general.

U.S. Pacific Command: Brig. Gen. James Bryan, director of the Command, Control, Communication and Computer System, to Defense Information Systems Agency vice director.

Marine Corps Base Hawaii: Sgt. Maj. David Rollins relieved Sgt. Maj. Eduardo Gasden at Marine Aviation Logistics Support Element at Kaneohe Bay recently.