eDASH standardizes environmental communication, information sharing

  • Published
  • By Jennifer Schneider
  • Air Force Civil Engineer Center
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas --  The Air Force recently approved the standardized implementation of eDASH, an online tool serving as a one-stop source for environmental policy, procedures and guidance.

eDASH gives the Air Force Civil Engineer Center and its regional support teams an efficient way to standardize communication and share important information with more than 160 installations worldwide, helping the Air Force effectively manage its environmental management system requirements, said Maj. Gen. Timothy Byers, The Air Force Civil Engineer, in a May 2013 memo mandating Air Force-wide use and implementation.

"eDASH will enable a central repository and information sharing for Air Force enterprise-wide environmental programs by supporting all installations and (major commands) in conformance with (environmental management system) requirements," Byers said.

The tool is available to anyone with a common access card and provides a centralized location to find current information and answers to environmental questions.

"eDASH is sometimes thought of as a tool just for environmental personnel, but it's for everyone," said Erica Becvar, the Air Force Environmental Management System program manager at AFCEC.

"The environmental management system at an installation takes into account all the activities on the base, what every person does at that facility," she explained. "Everything you do as part of your job has the potential to impact the environment. Choices are made on a daily basis by each person that can impact air, water, and land. It was easy to see that there was a need for a centralized location for authoritative guidance on various environmental situations that are encountered by staff. eDASH was the answer."

eDASH is not just a repository of static information, it also provides feedback, Becvar said. If a user of eDASH cannot quickly find an answer for a specific environmental question, he or she has the option of submitting the question on eDASH through ANSR, or Accessible kNowledge for Sustainable Resources.

The question is fielded by an eDASH support team member, who researches available information and, if necessary, forwards the question to the appropriate regional support team specialist or AFCEC subject matter expert for further analysis.

Inquiries are automatically tracked and stored within eDASH, so the response provided is readily available for viewing by future users of eDASH with the same question.

Additional tools have been added to the site, such as an action tracker for task management, as well as dynamic program dashboards that use information from data calls and other sources to graphically display compliance and other metrics so commanders and SMEs can easily see the status of their programs.

"The tool is continually being updated and improved," Becvar said. "As usage increases, we will uncover even more ways to enhance capabilities of eDASH and streamline information management and exchange between AFCEC, the (major commands) and installations."