Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment The Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment ( AFCEE ) merged with the Air Force Real Property Agency and the Air Force Civil Engineer Support Agency to form the Air Force Civil Engineer Center on Oct . 1 , 2012 . AFCEE , formerly the Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence , was a Field Operating Agency ( FOA ) of the United States Air Force that provided a full range of technical and professional services to the Air Force community in areas related to environmental restoration , pollution prevention , environmental planning , design and construction management , and comprehensive planning and design . Regional Environmental Offices ( REOs ) represented the Air Force to federal , state , and local agencies to facilitate regional environmental compliance and management . Before the AFCEE was formed , there was not one centralized office where Air Force commanders could go for assistance with their installation ' s environmental and construction programs . That situation changed in 1991 , when AFCEE was approved and created as a field operating agency of the Air Force Civil Engineer . History . AFCEE was formed by consolidating a variety of Air Force personnel and assets located throughout the country , including several Air Force Regional Civil Engineer staff functions . The Center was formally inaugurated with a ribbon - cutting ceremony in Brooks AFB Hangar 9 on November 3 , 1991 . It originally consisted of four major elements : the Environmental Services Office , the Construction Management Office , the Design Group , and three Regional Compliance Offices ( later renamed Regional Environmental Offices ) . Staff elements included Mission Support , Environmental and Contract Law , and Public Affairs . In addition , a division from the Human Systems Contracting Directorate was assigned to AFCEE to provide the Center with dedicated environmental contracting support . The Center , which had started out with only a handful of people , grew rapidly and within a year had in place a full service array of environmental cleanup contracts . Its concentration was on the 19 installations affected by Rounds I and II of the Base Realignment and Closure process . AFCEE underwent reorganization in 1994 . A major change was the transition of the Pollution Prevention and Environmental Planning Divisions of the Environmental Services Directorate into two separate directorates . The execution directorates thus were : Construction Management , Design Group , Environmental Conservation and Planning , Environmental Restoration , and Pollution Prevention . AFCEE did not have a building of its own when it first began operations . Employees worked in different facilities throughout Brooks , some in leased modular buildings . However , in July 1994 ground was broken for the new , nearly 73 , 000 square foot ( 6 , 800 square meter ) headquarters building . A year later , a ribbon - cutting ceremony formally inaugurated the Center ' s new home . Organizational streamlining took place in April 1997 , with Construction Management and the Design Group merging into one organization called the Design and Construction Directorate . In other changes , the Pollution Prevention Directorate was renamed the Environmental Quality Directorate and the former Design Group ' s Planning Division moved to the Environmental Conservation and Planning Directorate , completing the establishment of a Comprehensive Planning Division . Personnel and resources . The agency employed more than 500 authorized civilians and 48 military members . In addition to its in - house staff , AFCEE had many of the nation ' s most respected and capable contractors as its partners . The center ' s multibillion dollar contracting capacity covered the entire spectrum of environmental and construction management services . Organization . A civilian director , a member of the Senior Executive Service , headed the center . An executive director , an Air Force colonel also served as the commander of the center ' s military personnel , assisted the director . They led an organization composed of five business line directorates , a technical directorate , three regional environmental offices and four support directorates . The business line directorates were designed to provide direct services to specific customers and to act as their single point of contact for most AFCEE work . Operations . Environmental restoration . AFCEE performed " cradle - to - grave " management for base environmental restoration that spans the full spectrum of cleanup activities , from preliminary assessment / site investigation to remedial action , remedial process optimization , and site close out . The Center served as the primary restoration agent and consultant to the Air Force Real Property Agency ( AFRPA ) and major command s ( MAJCOMs ) for designated bases . It also provided technical assistance to Headquarters , United States Air Force ( HQ USAF ) and MAJCOMs on issues affecting restoration policy and guidance , and munitions response program development . It was also the Air Force agent for restoration technology transfer . AFCEE identified and validated environmental research and development requirements , managed demonstration projects , and maintained technical libraries . The Center provided technical support to the Air Force Legal Services Agency ' s Environmental Law and Litigation Division , and the Department of Justice on issues relating to Air Force Third Party Site environmental liabilities .