DOE is committed to responsible stewardship of cultural resources on its lands. The Department has many rich and varied cultural resources including archeological and historical sites, Native American burial and sacred sites, and historic buildings. The Department has an obligation to protect these resources for future generations.

Learn more about Cultural Resource Management.

EHSS leads DOE’s coordinated Earth Day celebrations at the DOE Headquarters Buildings in Forrestal (FORS) in Washington, D.C. and Germantown (GTN) in Germantown, MD.

Learn more about the Earth Day Photo and Haiku Contests
 

DOE is committed to responsible environmental stewardship of its electronics, including computers, displays, printers and cell phones. DOE is also committed to the energy efficient management and optimization of all of its data centers. Headquarters provides technical assistance for purchasing sustainable products; enabling power and print management; ensuring environmentally sound reuse and recycling of electronics; and consolidating and optimizing data centers.

Learn more about Electronics Stewardship & Data Centers

DOE uses Environmental Management Systems already in place at DOE facilities as a management framework to determine and achieve sustainability goals and targets. DOE is committed to implement sustainability into all aspects of operations. EMSs provide a structure for site‐level cross-cutting and multi‐functional coordination necessary to plan for and achieve the Department's sustainability goals.

Learn more about Environmental Management Systems

DOE is committed to using science, technology, and effective management to minimize fugitive emissions throughout the Department. To assist in achieving this goal the Department created the Fugitive Emissions' Working Group. 

Learn more about Fugitive Emissions

The Department of Energy (DOE) is engaged in activities related to the protection and conservation of migratory birds at its laboratories and facilities nation-wide.  These activities are carried out at the Department’s facilities pursuant to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Executive Order  13186, Responsibilities of Federal Agencies to Protect Migratory Birds, with support from the DOE Migratory Bird Workgroup.  Headquarters provides technical assistance in the resolution of migratory bird issues for the Department.

Learn more about Migratory Bird Conservation

DOE’s Pollinator Protection Plan is part of a national strategy to protect pollinators and enhance their habitats.  DOE sites already practice many pollinator-friendly best management practices and have plans to increase their use.

Learn more about Pollinator Protection

The purpose of pollution prevention and waste reduction is to prevent or reduce pollution at the source whenever feasible. Pollutants and wastes that cannot be prevented through source reduction will be diverted from entering the waste stream through environmentally safe and cost-effective reuse or recycling to the greatest extent practicable. The DOE Pollution Prevention, Waste Reduction and Recycling Program supports DOE Order 436.1, Departmental Sustainability and the Department’s  Sustainability Report and Implementation Plan (SRIP). Under this Program, Headquarters assists DOE Field and Program Offices in the implementation of the specific goals identified in these documents.

Learn more about Pollution Prevention, Waste Reduction, and Recycling

DOE is adapting to its operations to identify and minimize climate-related and other vulnerabilities across all DOE policies, programs and activities. DOE is assessing climate change vulnerabilities, using the best available science, to strengthen the agency’s planning, operations, and investment activities and ensure the continuation of its mission.

Learn more about Resilience

Federal agencies are required to give preference to products that are energy and water efficient, alternative fuel/fuel-efficient vehicles, non-ozone depleting substances, and made from biobased or recycled content.  Visit this page to learn about sustainable purchasing requirements, successful purchasing approaches, recognition programs, benefits, tools and resources, and additional information specific to DOE purchasers and Sustainable Acquisition Working Group members.

Learn more about Sustainable Acquisition

DOE’s Sustainable Climate-Ready Sites (SCRS) program is a recognition program for DOE sites, designed to foster excellence in sustainability, climate resilience and natural resource protection by incentivizing DOE federal staff and contractors to implement high-impact, enduring environmental stewardship policies and practices. 

Learn more about Sustainable Climate-Ready Sites (SCRS) program.

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