Assistant Secretary of 
the Army for 
Civil Works 
 
 
 
 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 
 
Sustainability Plan 
 
2022 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
16 November 2022

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2022 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sustainability Plan 
 
1. USACE Sustainability Plan Summary 
The Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works (ASA(CW)) is the Chief 
Sustainability Officer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and is committed 
to achieving the goals of Executive Order (E.O.) 14057 and reducing scope 1, 2, and 3 
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in support of the whole-of-government approach for 
federal sustainability. USACE employs a systems-based approach to achieving 
sustainability goals, leveraging annual investment strategies, holistic planning and 
implementation, performance reviews across all command levels, and course 
adjustments as directed by the USACE Strategic Sustainability Committee (SSC). 
USACE's sustainability strategy prioritizes efforts to transition its fleet to 100% zero-
emission vehicles (ZEV) through phasing in light-duty (LD) ZEV acquisitions and 
installing electric vehicle (EV) supply equipment (EVSE). Efforts to build a more climate- 
and sustainability-focused workforce and to address environmental justice (EJ) 
considerations have been incorporated throughout the planning and implementation of 
the ZEV and EVSE strategies. In addition, USACE is working to improve its buildings, 
campuses, and installations through on-site carbon pollution-free electricity (CFE) 
generation, net-zero design and construction, implementation of energy and water use 
efficiency measures, waste and pollution reduction, and sustainable procurement. 
 
2. Priority Actions 
A. 100 Percent Carbon Pollution-Free Electricity 
USACE is taking action to increase CFE to 100% by 2030 with up to 50% on a 24/7 
basis. To achieve this goal, priority actions achieved in FY2022 include the following: 
• Consumed at least 7.5% legacy renewables to be counted towards the CFE target, 
per Section 203 of the Energy Policy Act (EPAct) of 2005 Cap of 7.5% of total 
electricity consumption. 
• Installed solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on Federal Land at Eau Galle River Lake 
Project in Wisconsin with a generation capacity of 7 kilowatts; 835 kilowatt hours 
(kWh) were generated in June 2022. 
• Quantified emissions from purchased electricity by region using the Environmental 
Protection Agency’s (EPA) Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database 
to prioritize new cost-effective CFE installation sites, several of which are already 
planned or in contracting phase across USACE, based on electricity rates and on-
site renewable potential. 
 
B. 100 Percent Zero-Emission Vehicle Fleet 
In addition to phasing in LD ZEV acquisitions, USACE is focusing on strategic siting and 
installation of EVSE infrastructure through priority actions achieved in FY2022: 
• Identified approximately 296 ports for EVSE installation at 55 locations (as of July 
2022) using the results of the DATABOOK, a USACE-specific Excel spreadsheet 
tool populated with agency fleet data and other logistical, social, and environmental 
factors, and two virtual site assessments, the Data Call for Civil Works (CW) facilities 
and Daily Tasking Order (DTO) for Revolving Fund (RF) facilities in FY2022 Q2. 
• Leveraged $8 million (M) in appropriations to begin implementation of EVSE 
infrastructure at identified and prioritized sites through U.S. Army Engineering and 
Support Center, Huntsville’s (HNC) pre-existing multiple award task order contract

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(MATOC) Facilities Repair & Renewal (FRR) Program, which offers a fast-track 
method for design and construction at USACE project sites. 
 
C. Net-Zero Emissions Buildings, Campuses, and Installations 
i. Design and Construction for Net-Zero Emissions 
To reduce GHG emissions from its buildings’ portfolio by 50% by FY2032 and 
achieve net-zero emissions by FY2045 from the FY2008 baseline, USACE took 
the following FY2022 actions: 
• Began in June 2022 identifying opportunities at the U.S. Army Engineer 
Research and Development Center (ERDC)’s Construction Engineering 
Research Laboratory to advance and deploy carbon sequestering materials 
and low-GHG design approaches for USACE’s civil facilities and infrastructure 
footprint, including water-related infrastructure such as dams, recreation areas, 
hydropower plants, locks, canals, and water storage to reduce lifecycle GHG 
emissions by over 50% relative to current practices. 
 
ii.  Increasing Energy Efficiency 
USACE is implementing the following priority actions in FY2022 to increase facility 
energy efficiency across the agency's building portfolio: 
• Identified 85 energy conservation measures (ECMs) in FY2022 through 8 
covered facility audits; began implementation of three ECMs including two 
boiler plant improvements at ERDC and reached the measurement and 
verification phase in an energy savings performance contract (ESPC) at the 
Humphreys Engineering Center Support Activity (HECSA) Cude Building. 7,  
• Established the Workforce Transformation Work Group to reduce energy use 
through workplace reconfiguration and coordinate efforts by HNC, HECSA, and 
USACE Logistics. 
• Met with utilities to better understand and limit impact on facility energy use for 
EV demand charging and EVSE metering during potential operational changes. 
 
iii. Increasing Water Efficiency 
USACE is working to develop comprehensive strategies to optimize water use 
across the highest water-use intensive facilities through the following FY2022 
priority actions: 
• Continued to identify, repair and replace water line fixtures in old infrastructure 
with histories of recurring breaks and emergency repairs. 
• Continued to achieve incremental reduction of potable water intensity, building 
on the 1.6% annual reduction and 17.6% reduction from FY2007 baseline 
reported for FY2021. 
 
D. Reducing Waste and Pollution 
USACE’s strategy for waste reduction is to implement prevention and recycling 
measures and comply with federal management and disposal requirements, including 
for non-hazardous solid waste (NHSW) and construction and demolition (C&D) debris. 
Priority actions achieved include: 
• Implemented a new C&D debris diversion metric to improve tracking and meet the 
DoD requirement to divert at least 60% of C&D debris by 2025 and 75% by 2030 
(March 2022).

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• Provided three trainings on the Environmental Compliance Assessment auditor 
course and scheduled three additional sessions for 2023; provided nine solid waste 
trainings, reaching approximately 250 personnel through the quarterly Corps of 
Engineers Reduced and Abridged FEMP Tool (CRAFT) 101 series to improve 
implementation of the NHSW Diversion and Materials Management Policy by field-
level project managers. 
• Began the development of a white paper to support Major Subordinate Commands 
(MSCs) in reporting C&D debris diversion rates (July 2022). 
 
E. Sustainable Procurement  
USACE’s sustainable procurement strategy is to institutionalize sustainable 
procurement practices through training tools and streamlined reporting. Priority actions 
in FY2022 include: 
• Achieved inclusion of sustainable contract actions in nearly 97% of contracts, a 0.2% 
increase from 2021 in number of actions with statutory environmental requirements 
and a 0.4% increase in percent value of contracts with sustainable requirements. 
• Continued to improve visualization of CRAFT contract tools and train staff on the 
Sustainable Acquisition Clause Selection Tool and Compliance Assessment Tool. 
F. Climate- and Sustainability-Focused Federal Workforce 
USACE is actively enhancing efforts to engage, educate, and equip its workforce with 
the skills and tools to achieve sustainability objectives. FY2022 priority actions include: 
• Updated 10 training sessions on specific sustainability subject areas following the 
release of E.O. 14057 to enhance sustainability awareness USACE-wide. 
• Issued the first edition of the internal monthly EV and EVSE Newsletter as part of 
USACE Headquarters (HQUSACE) commitment to inform field-level personnel on 
EVs and EVSE, highlight updates on EVSE progress, facilitate transparent 
discussion, and share any important, relevant timely information to bolster personnel 
EV awareness (July 2022). 
 
G. Incorporating Environmental Justice 
USACE is working to incorporate EJ considerations into sustainability planning, 
programs, and operations. Priority actions achieved in FY2022 include the following: 
• Incorporated EJ data from EPA’s Environmental Justice Screening and Mapping 
Tool (EJScreen) by spatially joining the tool’s demographics and statistics into the 
DATABOOK to prioritize facilities for EVSE installation in marginalized communities. 
• Presented best practices and lessons learned on prioritizing EJ into EVSE siting to 
members of the Federal EV Agency Roundtable (FEVAR). 
 
H. Accelerating Progress through Partnerships 
USACE is developing strong partnerships with other agencies and private partners. 
Priority actions achieved in FY2022 include the following: 
• Hosted the National Park Service (NPS) energy program manager to discuss energy 
and water use reduction efforts, EV and EVSE strategies, and other best practices.  
• Hosted working sessions with representatives from the General Services 
Administration (GSA) Telematics team to discuss upcoming reporting requirements, 
available vehicle intelligence technology, and fleet management best practices.

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• Engaged with private utilities, such as Southern Company, on the EVSE support 
utilities can provide to project sites in their service range through utility-financed 
methods for on-site assessments, installation, and operations and maintenance. 
 
3. Progress Examples 
Reduce Agency GHG Emissions and Transition to a 100% ZEV Fleet  
In FY2022, USACE identified responsibility for approximately 6,692 GSA-leased non-
tactical vehicles (NTVs) and 685 USACE-owned NTVs. Approximately 70% of USACE’s 
GSA-leased NTVs are LD vehicles, therefore subject to the requirement of 100% ZEV 
acquisition by 2027. To meet this target, USACE conducted the annual Vehicle 
Allocation Methodology and Vehicle Utilization Review Board in June 2022 to optimize 
fleet composition and size in support of mission requirements and GHG emissions 
reduction goals. LD internal combustion engine (ICE) NTVs contributed to 12% of 
USACE’s FY2021 GHG scope 1 and 2 emissions in FY2021. Thus, 13 ICE vehicles 
were identified to be eliminated by the end of FY2022 and replaced with LD ZEVs. Due 
to delivery delays and supply chain issues at the manufacturing level, USACE is 
working to install EVSE ahead of the anticipated ZEV acquisitions to support a mission-
ready EV transition. 
 
Transition to a 100% ZEV Fleet Through Data Analysis 
To strategically meet the new ZEV fleet requirements of E.O. 14057, engineers at HNC 
designed the DATABOOK Tool to determine optimal phasing of facilities and vehicles 
for EV transition. The DATABOOK is an Excel spreadsheet populated with fleet data 
sourced from the USACE CRAFT, Logistics, and Operations databases, U.S. Energy 
Information Administration, EJScreen, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Renewable 
Laboratory (NREL), and the Small Business Administration. The tool ranks sites for 
EVSE prioritization by weighing variables on cost & execution effectiveness (i.e., 
electricity rates, gas prices, demand pricing), fleet statistics (i.e., fleet size, fleet age, 
local EVSE maturity), and emissions & EJ (i.e., clean grid placement, HUBZone 
potential, air pollution) into a single composite rating to determine an overall suitability 
score for each vehicle and facility. The result is a phased EVSE implementation 
approach optimized for cost and execution efficiency, facility and personnel readiness, 
EJ considerations, and GHG emissions reductions. 
 
Transition to a 100% ZEV Fleet Through Workforce Awareness and Education 
To baseline USACE facility maturity and personnel readiness for EV and EVSE, two 
surveys were issued USACE-wide in January 2022 and April 2022. The surveys were 
designed to solicit information from project site managers, field engineers, technical 
staff, and other relevant fleet personnel across CW and RF sites. Questions focused on 
three main subject areas: general site information (i.e., primary source power, metering 
capacity, count of ICE vehicles, count of EVs, vehicle usage, parking capacity, etc.); 
projected impacts to operations during the fleet transition (i.e., projected utility costs, 
projected construction, electrical infrastructure, etc.) and personnel readiness (i.e., 
concerns, reactions, and feelings towards EVs). The surveys functioned as virtual site 
assessments and educational resources. USACE will continue to issue the DTO each 
September to evaluate progress against E.O. goals and distribute resources to build 
personnel knowledge on EV and EVSE through the delivery of monthly newsletters and 
status briefings.

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Reducing Waste and Pollution through Performance Management Systems 
USACE tracks and reports a set of quarterly sustainability metrics at the MSC level that 
feed into the agency’s overall performance management system, known as Leading 
Metrics. Leading Metrics are updated according to new federal requirements, policy, 
and agency progress. In FY2022 Q2, HQUSACE implemented a new waste diversion 
metric that measures the percent of C&D debris recycled, composted, and converted 
using data pulled from Operations, Construction, and Contracting. Reporting C&D waste 
has been a challenge because modern market-based recycling services are not readily 
available at many project sites. By including this metric as a quarterly requirement, 
USACE aims to address this challenge and increase diversion. 
 
Reducing Waste and Pollution through Source Reduction 
Source reduction is DoD’s preferred environmental waste management method. While 
source reduction initiatives are not currently incorporated into diversion metrics 
calculations, engineers at ERDC the Installation Technology Transition Program (ITTP) 
in FY22 to identify and track source reduction as well as waste diversion. ITTP’s key 
tool, the “Dashboard Integration for the Valuation of Emissions Reduction in Real-Time” 
(DIVERT), captures increases in diversion through existing efforts (i.e., water bottle refill 
stations that divert plastic waste) to allow locations without alternative disposal outlets 
(i.e., recycling) to receive credit for this diversion, should the incorporation of these 
critical data points be supported. To determine a baseline on which to deploy a more 
formal source reduction effort, USACE database experts developed a new CRAFT 
interface in FY22 for sites to report any engagement in source reduction initiatives. The 
new interface will be deployed in FY23 for improved reporting.  
 
Train an Enhanced Climate- and Sustainability-Focused Workforce 
Following the release of the E.O. 14057, HQUSACE updated its Sustainability Training 
series in FY 2022. The trainings are comprised of 10 briefs designed for personnel to 
learn about policy drivers, target goals and metrics, resources, USACE-specific roles 
and responsibilities, and opportunities to drive sustainability across various topic areas, 
covering: CFE and Renewable Energy, GHG Emissions, Fleet Management, 
Sustainable Federal Buildings, Energy Use Intensity, Water Use Intensity, Sustainable 
Acquisitions, and Waste Management. HQUSACE plans to deliver the updated training 
sessions biannually to a target audience of 30 workforce members, virtually or in-
person. Specific trainings were also developed for senior leaders (“Executive Session”) 
and other interested personnel (“Sustainability 101”).