As Richard B. Russell's Environmental Compliance Coordinator, Mark Wade tirelessly fulfilled USACE Environmental Compliance principles and adopted common sense sustainability practices for virtually every aspect of the lake's environmental, security and safety programs. He was acknowledged for his efforts with this award.

Before making efficiency improvements, he monitored energy and water consumption, and then later observed that the results of his efforts netted an impressive 33% reduction in consumption. These projects included updating the Project Managers Office by installing low-flow faucets and toilets, improving insulation values and replacing leaky single-paned windows with efficient double- paned windows with low-E coating technology.

Mark researched ways to improve heating and cooling efficiencies and adopted an innovative water- based geothermal heat pump system, using the lake's water as a very economical geothermal energy source. This improvement created an astonishing 60 percent energy savings over the traditional heat pump previously in use. Overall, the project estimates that these improvements will reduce its carbon footprint by 30 percent. Mark is also active in ensuring the safe operation of the project and developed an overall safety plan. He installed CCTV security cameras at the remote Oxygenation System site and developed an emergency action plan that he coordinated with local authorities.

Mark undertook major security initiatives, including the construction of a one-third mile long fence that serves as a secure perimeter for the power plant. The new security measures also included the construction of a granite wall and ram-resistant gates at the most vulnerable locations in the perimeter.

Mark said about his award, "It has been a true learning opportunity working on sustainability projects such as these. It has given me a new perspective on how our energy conservation and sustainability efforts benefit us on a daily basis. At the Russell Project, we continue to look for opportunities to help USACE meet our national sustainability goals."