© iStockphoto.com/birdseye
Fort Bragg:
Jumping into Sustainability
Many people are unaware that the traditionally conservative Southeast boasts a city of almost 300,000 that is fully committed to sustainability and whose strategic plan’s No. 1 goal is to become a Sustainable Community. In addition, this city is the co-founder of a nonprofit organization to support sustainability efforts throughout the surrounding 8-county region. Winner of numerous state, national and even White House awards for its efforts, the city’s most unique claim to fame, by many people’s standards, is that it is a United States Army Installation.
Since 2000 Fort Bragg, a premier power projection platform with troops deployed around the world, has led the way in creating a sustainable Army and a sustainable region. Located in North Carolina’s scenic Sandhills region – nestled between Raleigh, Charlotte and the popular beaches of the Outer Banks – the installation is home to a diverse array of military units, including the XVIII Airborne Corps, 82nd Airborne Division and U.S. Army Special Operations Command. These soldiers have a worldwide reputation of professionalism and mission accomplishment, thanks to their steadfast spirit and uncompromising values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and physical courage.
 |
 |
|
 |
“. . . we had to find a better way to incorporate environmental and community considerations to find true win-win solutions for the environment, community, and mission.” – Paul Wirt |
|
 |
 |
Fort Bragg’s mission is to maintain the Army’s strategic crisis response force, which is manned and trained to deploy rapidly by air, sea and land anywhere in the world and prepared to fight upon arrival and win. The phrase “18 hours to wheels up” is literal at Fort Bragg as this elevated readiness state must be maintained at all times. Training, operations, facilities, equipment and transportation are geared to support a global mission.
This “city” supports almost 300,000 soldiers, military dependents, retirees, civilian workers and on-site contractors. Like most cities its size, it boasts a modern 1,000,000 square-foot medical center, 11 shopping centers with numerous restaurants, nine schools, libraries, churches, child-care centers, its own airfield and dozens of recreational facilities. And, despite heavy utilization on its 160,000 acres of training lands, Fort Bragg protects and preserves five endangered species, including the red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW).