MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni received the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Energy and Water Management Award via an All Navy Message (ALNAV) at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan, Oct. 16, 2016.

MCAS Iwakuni earned gold installation status for the second year in a row for efficiently conserving energy.

“The Gold status signifies an outstanding program,” said U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer Dustin Wooden, chief of utilities and energy management at MCAS Iwakuni. “It’s impressive that MCAS Iwakuni managed to keep gold status for another year, especially with all the construction going on base.”

The air station has energy reduction goals. Data is collected and reported quarterly, and then it is analyzed annually to create a plan in order to decrease the amount of energy used each year.

“This is an entire installation process,” said Wooden. “Everyone is involved in this because it works on all areas of energy conservation, such as water, steam, fuel production, electricity consumption and any other utility services the base provides.”

The Utilities and Energy Management Division tracks resources used throughout the air station and submits the information to Headquarters Marine Corps to apply for the award.

“We’re growing as a base, so we measure energy per square foot per building,” said William E. Baker, Jr., director of utilities and energy management at MCAS Iwakuni. “The installation has to do their part by staying informed and accountable through oversight.”

Baker also said that the SECNAV Energy and Water Management Award also gives residents on the base an idea to of how the installation is progressing in energy conservation.

“People lose motivation,” said Baker. “It’s a form of feedback that lets us communicate with the community. We can’t show them that they’re building saved a certain amount of kilowatt hours in this last year, but we can say the actions that they took were recognized through this annual award program.”

The award makes everyone on base aware that their efforts to conserve energy are not going unnoticed.

“Whether it’s turning your monitor off before you leave work or turning off the water when you brush your teeth, it’s the little things that add up and paint the big picture for the future," said Wooden.