BALTIMORE –
The U.S. Navy’s "Stewards of the Sea: Defending Freedom, Protecting the Environment" exhibit was showcased during Maryland Fleet Week and Air Show Baltimore.
This is the second year Stewards of the Sea has been a part of Maryland Fleet Week events. The main focus for this year's exhibit was the promotion and support of the public understanding of Navy environmental stewardship, including the ongoing environmental planning and permitting actions for activities in the Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing study area, which includes sea space and airspace over the Atlantic Ocean, the eastern coast of North America, portions of the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico.
"The Navy environmental display is designed to covey to the public, the great things the Navy is doing to protect and preserve our maritime environment," said Mike Jones, the environmental planning and resources section head at U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFFC).
The Stewarts of the Sea display also offered visitors a hands on approach to how the Navy handles trash collection and control aboard ships, with a focus on plastic trash handling procedures to comply with Navy environmental compliance and policies.
“Our initiative includes protective measures to minimize impact to marine species, before, during and after training and testing; investing in shipboard technology that improve environmental compliance; and partnering with regulators and scientists to better understand our ocean resources,” Jones added.
The Stewards of the Sea outreach program, developed by USFFC in 2014, is part of a strategy to increase support for fleet training activities amongst public, scientific and regulatory communities. In conjunction with the Hampton Roads Naval Museum, the program also has an interactive and education exhibit located at Nauticus, a maritime-themed science center and museum located in Norfolk, that includes hands-on activities, games and exciting interactive displays, videos, and Navy careers attainable through study of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related subjects.
For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil/, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy/, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy/
For more news from U.S. Fleet Forces Command, visit http://www.public.navy.mil/usff/ or http://www.facebook.com/usfleetforcescommand/