Environmental office protects Team Vance from hazardous materials Published Dec. 18, 2013 By Senior Airman Frank Casciotta 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- Every day the men and women in the base environmental office strive to maintain safe working environments for Team Vance. "We keep the base safe by tracking the type and quantity of materials, protect personnel from exposure to hazardous materials, reduce cost of materials and waste disposal, and maintain compliance with environmental laws," said Bryce Tobyne, the Environmental Branch manager with PRI/DJI, a subcontractor of PAE at Vance Air Force Base. "When an office orders a chemical they tell us what they want, what it's for and how much they plan to use," said Tobyne. By monitoring the amount of materials used the environmental office helps reduce waste. "In the past folks would order more than they needed to keep a ready supply. The problem is that if something exceeds its shelf life it turns into hazardous waste, which is expensive to dispose of," he said. Tracking nearly 3,500 chemicals at Vance is only one aspect of the environmental office's job. They also train supervisors how to approve a product before it's ordered, to make sure it's safe. That way the supervisor can brief the employees of what they are dealing with and how to properly handle it. "We teach supervisors the importance of keeping their employees aware of what they are using. It's unfair to let them work with materials they are unfamiliar with," said Tobyne. Members of the environmental office conduct walkthrough inspections of facilities on base, and occasionally find minor infractions. "Our biggest challenges are finding shops that purchase chemicals without proper authorization and shops that borrow hazardous materials from each other," said Tobyne.