ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE AND RESTORATION

A mother osprey (left) sits protectively next to one of her chicks in the nest situated at the top of a pole in the parking lot at the NASA News Center at Kennedy Space Center. Behind the nest can be seen the immense flag painted on the side of the Vehicle Assembly Building.

Purpose of the Environmental Compliance and Restoration Program
The purpose of NASA's Environmental Compliance and Restoration (ECR) Program is to clean up chemicals released to the environment from past activities. Cleanups are prioritized to ensure that the highest priority liabilities are addressed first in order to protect human health and the environment and preserve natural resources for future missions. Funding is managed through the ECR Program within Institutional Investments. ECR projects include both Restoration projects and Environmental Management Investment projects.

• Ensuring public and employees are not exposed to chemicals released from past activities
• Restoring impacted natural resources for current and future missions
• Preserving NASA's reputation as a "good neighbor" so that NASA activities will continue to enjoy strong public support
• Reducing the Agency's unfunded environmental liability so that future funding may go toward Mission requirements
• Addressing changing regulatory requirements and advances in scientific information to ensure chemical risk management decisions remain based on sound science and support mission activities.

• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability MAct (CERCLA).
• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
• Equivalent State laws and regulations

• Operation of a 1200 gallons per minute (gpm) nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) treatment system at White Sands Test Facility
• Agreement with the City of Pasadena to fund a 7000 gpm VOC and perchlorate treatment plant outside of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Ongoing decommissioning of a 60 megawatt Test Reactor at Plum Brook Station