Montgomery, Alabama

This facility features the following green attributes:
Green Power
Water Management Plan
Native Landscaping

National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory (NAREL)

Total Facility Area: 71,656 gross square feet (GSF)
Estimated Personnel: 55 persons

FY 2003 Energy Consumption*: 25,864,174,852 Btu per year
FY 2003 Btu per GSF per Year: 505,762
FY 2012 Energy Consumption: 27,303,231,680 Btu per year
FY 2012 Btu per GSF per Year: 381,032; 24.7 percent reduction from the baseline

FY 2007 Water Consumption**: 4,935,437 gallons per year
FY 2007 Gallons per GSF per Year: 90.3
FY 2012 Water Consumption: 3,784,760 gallons per year
FY 2012 Gallons per GSF per Year: 52.8; 41.5 percent reduction from the baseline

All energy and water data are reported as of FY 2012.
*FY 2003 is the standard baseline year used by the federal government to measure energy conservation progress.
**FY 2007 is the standard baseline year used by the federal government to measure water conservation progress.

Description

Located on Maxwell Air Force Base, the National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory (NAREL) in Montgomery, Alabama, provides radiological monitoring data to support rulemaking and radiological emergency response activities. The Environmental Radiation Ambient Monitoring System (ERAMS) is the only nationwide environmental radiation monitoring network in the United States. NAREL also supports Superfund and enforcement activities with laboratory and field measurements and technical assistance for radioactive and hazardous chemical (mixed waste) contaminants. The facility includes a state-of-the-art radioanalytical laboratory and office space.

Awards

Jonathan Aplin received a fiscal year (FY) 2010 H₂Overachiever Award for helping to achieve water intensity savings of 6 percent at NAREL in FY 2010 compared to FY 2009, due to leadership in implementing many of the projects in the facility’s water management plan. Projects included connecting the air handler condensate recovery system to the cooling tower, fixing an operational issue with the cooling tower, modifying the reverse osmosis system to run only on demand, and installing high-efficiency fixtures.

Unique Environmental Features

Solar parking lot lighting fixtures at NAREL.

Green Power

In December 2010, NAREL completed installation of eight 4.5-kilowatt solar lighting fixtures in the facility's back parking lot, illuminating the space and making travel safer after dark. The lights are motion- and light-sensitive. They are able to store the power needed to operate for approximately five days in two 100-amp batteries, and they optimize their electricity use by reducing power to 50 percent when the lot is empty. Collectively, the annual electricity produced and used by these solar lighting fixtures is estimated to be 8,760 kilowatt hours.
EPA offsets 100 percent of the electricity consumption at NAREL with renewable energy certificates (RECs) purchased through the Agency's blanket green power contract. Learn more about EPA's blanket green power contracts.

Water Conservation

Piping in the air handler condensate recovery system at NAREL.

In October 2010, NAREL installed an air handler condensate recovery system to collect water for the facility's cooling tower, which accounts for 65 percent of the facility's water use. Based on the initial design, the project was projected to help the facility reduce water use by 800,000 gallons annually. Initial data indicate the project could actually save up to 1 million gallons annually.
In June 2010, NAREL completed a water management plan (PDF) (20 pp, 241K, About PDF).
The laboratory has eliminated all forms of single-pass equipment cooling.
No landscape irrigation water is used at the laboratory, as grasses and shrubs are climate-appropriate and survive on natural rainfall.

For More Information About This Facility

Website: www.epa.gov/narel

Michael Clark (clark.michael@epa.gov)
Maxwell AFB - Gunter Annex
540 South Morris Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36115
Fax: (334) 270-3434