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Trucks Will Help Environmental Office Begin Work

May-12-2010 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT

Story by Pvt. Zach Zuber

DIYALA, Iraq – After months of processing paper work, two signatures were all it took for the Diyala Environmental Office to receive three new vehicles from the 296th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, May 5.

"We have many tasks that we have to do… there are many places for us to visit to enforce our regulations," said Abdallah Haddi Grafa'a Al-Shammari, director of the Diyala Environmental Office. "This will be very helpful for us to go around to all the different areas that we need to control."

The DEO is a young organization whose task is to improve environmental conditions and enforce pollution regulations that affect the province's natural resources. These trucks are just one part of the assistance they have received from U.S. forces. Since their initial meeting, the 296th BSB has provided supplies and training to help the DEO execute their mission throughout the province.

"The first area they are focusing on is water contamination, so we have worked with the PRT [Provincial Reconstruction Team] to provide them with necessary lab equipment for testing," said Capt. Mary Nolan, preventative medicine officer for the 296th BSB. "We have also tried to help get fencing to prevent people from throwing trash in the water."

The process to give these resources to the DEO was originally set in motion months ago. The DEO leaders met with members of the Diyala PRT and 296th BSB to discuss conservation strategies and the equipment they would need to enforce them.

"When we first talked about equipment they [DEO] needed, they asked us about vehicles and the lab equipment, so we began searching back in November to transfer equipment to the government of Iraq" said Maj. Samuel Jungman, the commander of Charlie Medical Company, 296th BSB. "This starts at the company level and has to go all the way up into the Department of State, so it is a fairly lengthy process."

The vehicles are essentially the key piece to all this because the trucks allow DEO workers to get out into the area for testing of the water supply and enforcement of the conservation policies, said Nolan.

Soldiers of the 296th BSB have worked throughout their deployment to support many different programs, and this is one more step to enable Iraqi officials to protect their environment and build a better future.

(via Digital Video & Imagery Distribution System)


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