HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – Air Force officials recently announced the 66th Civil Engineering Division’s Natural Resources Program is the 2025 Department of the Air Force General Thomas D. White Environmental Award winner for small installation natural resources conservation.
The award highlights the progress made in a short amount of time considering the robust natural resources program did not formally exist until only recently.
“For decades, there was a determination that Hanscom Air Force Base didn’t have significant natural resources warranting active management,” said Scott Sheehan, installation natural resources manager. “We really didn’t have much of a program.”
That changed following a 2021 reevaluation, which led to the development of the base’s first modern Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan, or INRMP, completed in 2024.
The plan outlines how military installations manage natural resources while sustaining mission requirements.
Since 2024, the program has expanded rapidly, with multiple base projects beginning to address wetlands, endangered species and invasive threats.
“We went from a small program to something much larger almost overnight,” said Sheehan. “We had to figure out how to get it done.”
Daniel Robbins, a member of the 66 CED natural resources team, credited partnerships with federal agencies, academic institutions and nonprofit organizations as key to that success.
“I don’t think we could have done it without all the partnerships,” he said. “We’ve had very little time to process everything, and there’s still so much more to do. We’ve really only begun.”
Program officials said those partnerships have enabled a range of accomplishments, including identifying eight bat species on base, including the federally endangered Northern Long-eared Bat, as well as establishing regional collaboration to monitor other wildlife and invasive species on the installation.
The team also leads a multi-agency working group focused on combating the invasive spotted lanternfly, a pest that could impact operations if introduced to Hanscom AFB.
“We want to get a handle on it as soon as it arrives,” Sheehan said.
Beyond research and conservation, the program emphasizes engagement with the base middle school.
Officials partnered with seventh grade students to test environmentally friendly herbicide alternatives using household ingredients. The solution was later adopted by civil engineers, reducing the need for chemical treatments.
“It was a great way to involve the kids and find something that works,” said Robbins.
Longstanding efforts, such as annual cleanups along the Shawsheen River, have also shown measurable progress, with civil engineers, middle school students and volunteers collecting less debris over time, an indicator, officials say, of improved environmental awareness and ecosystem health.
Sheehan noted the program’s broader impact lies in its potential to serve as a model for other Air Force installations.
“The way we’re approaching this is repeatable,” he said. “What we’re doing here can be applied across the Air Force.”
The team will next compete at the Pentagon level, where winners are selected by a panel of nonprofit, academic and private-sector experts. A decision is expected later this year.