From the start of his career, Jonathan Harrington has always strived to serve the community he’s attached to, and that in turn has served him well as an environmental professional.

“Service has been a consistent thread from when I first started working. When I worked in private sector, it was my job to serve the client or company. While I was working with the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) I was working with different cities and communities, specifically with contamination issues and making viable places for development and revitalizing communities,” he said.

“At Army Environmental Command (AEC) I’m fortunate to do whatever I can with my team to help the warfighters and their families – working on their environmental issues, not only in the working environment, but in their living environment too,” Harrington said.

Harrington began his career in environmental science with a very conscious decision. While working with a private firm that specialized on asbestos remediation consulting, Harrington did environmental asbestos assessments in schools and enjoyed the work.

“I didn’t have a degree at that time, and I thought that I wanted to stay in the field,” he said. “So, I went to the University of Kansas and got a degree and have stayed in the environmental field ever since.”

In his current role in environmental management, Harrington said he and his team have a diverse, challenging and rewarding assignment.

“As an environmental support manager, I support various installations, including multiple cleanup programs as well as the overall programs in the Midwest,” he said. “I am assigned in working with four installations, and three of those are on the national priority list,” which he explained are installations that have had releases of hazardous substances requiring ongoing environmental cleanup.

He also said that he and his team work with ammunition plants, which present unique challenges as they create vital munition supplies for Soldiers.

“The ammunition plants have ongoing demands for various products, and many of these plants were built around the start of World War II. So, one of the challenges is undertaking necessary modernization project while still utilizing the existing sites,” he said. “This creates environmental cleanup projects that need to be addressed so the modernization construction can take place.”

Harrington said the AEC team is up to the challenge.

“I have the pleasure and honor of working with many fine men and women and that’s their bailiwick — to provide that kind of support and subject matter expertise that is essential to dealing with the complexities of an evolving environment,” he said.

Harrington did say that the ongoing evolution of the workforce can pose challenges.

“Recently, there’s been a trend of folks who have been in the field and for a long time transitioning out, retiring. There are new staff members coming in, and it is really important to have a good transition,” he said. “With the demands of science and the regulatory environment, which continues to evolve, we have to also understand the history of when a decision was made and why it was made, and how we are carrying it out.”

Harrington said that the overall awareness of environmental stewardship, and the importance of creating and maintaining positive relationships with stakeholders through consistent communication – from regulators and community members to internal Army units – is increasingly understood.

“I think there’s more of the effort of seeing the benefit of being transparent, and I can see that there’s been strides made to be transparent with what the environmental conditions are, what the plans are and keeping the public informed” he said. “Most people are more aware and cognizant of environmental issues and that impacts not only those that are working with it, but also the people that they work with. In some ways, I think we are at a critical time to continue the progress we are making.”