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Introduction The purpose of this Fact Sheet is to provide Air Force pollution prevention, compliance, and environmental management personnel a general description of the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS), and the DRMS field offices - the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Offices (DRMOs). The Fact Sheet discusses the various programs DRMS manages for the Department of Defense (DoD), including the environmental and hazardous materials management programs, and provides points of contact for more information. The Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service is a primary level field activity of the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). The DLA is the logistics combat support agency, established by the Department of Defense (DoD), whose primary role is to provide supplies and services to America's military forces worldwide. DRMS is responsible for the disposal of all excess personal property (not including land, buildings, or public records) generated by the military services worldwide. DRMS disposal programs include reutilization, transfer, donation, and sale. Through this process, materials and supplies are provided to DoD activities at no cost, allowing military components to reduce procurement costs, while achieving environmental and budgeting goals. Today, DRMS efforts to make property available for reuse within the government saves more than $3 billion annually making DRMS a Recycling Center of Excellence for the federal government. In FY97, DRMS managed the reuse of $3.8 billion worth of usable property and sold the remainder to the general public for $166.4 million in regional and retail sales worldwide. DRMS allows customers to screen, request, transfer, donate, and purchase excess property via the Internet and other electronic media. Headquartered in Battle Creek, Michigan, DRMS has a worldwide workforce of more than 3,000 personnel. DRMS International is headquartered in Weisbaden, Germany, and manages operations that stretch across 11 time zones. DRMS has opened temporary DRMOs to support U.S. military missions in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Haiti, and Bosnia. DRMS also supports the State Department's Humanitarian Assistance Program and Foreign Military Sales Program.
Defense Reutilization and Marketing Offices In support of the DRMS mission, approximately 150 Defense Reutilization and Marketing Offices (DRMOs) are located at military installations in 43 states and numerous foreign countries. The DRMOs are where the day-to-day mission of the DRMS is actually managed. DRMOs receive and screen all property turned in by military services for reutilization and reuse. If property cannot be reutilized within DoD, it is further screened for transfer or donation to other federal or state agencies, or to other qualified organizations. Property that is not reused is sold to the public as surplus.
Defense Materiel Disposition Manual Processes and responsibilities for excess property turn-in to DRMOs are described in DoD Manual 4160.21-M, "Defense Materiel Disposition Manual" (DMDM), also known as the "Fat Book." This manual was updated in August 1997 and includes many changes from the earlier manual it replaced. The manual is issued under the authority of DoD Regulation 4140.1-R, "Department of Defense Materiel Management Regulation," 4 January 1993, and provides guidance and instruction for implementing the various programs administered by DRMS. Some of these programs, discussed in detail below, include the Reutilization, Transfer, and Donation (R/T/D) Process, the Demilitarization Program, the Precious Metals Recovery Program, and the Environmental Program. The complete text of the DMDM is available from PRO-ACT or can be accessed via the World Wide Web (WWW) at http://www.drms.dla.mil/pubs/toc.htm.
The Reutilization, Transfer and Donation (R/T/D) Process The R/T/D Process is a screening and ordering process for customers who donate and receive property from a DRMO. When excess property is turned in, DRMS attempts to find, in order of priority, another DoD installation/activity that wants it (Reutilization), another federal agency that needs it (Transfer), or a state or authorized nonprofit organization that can use it (Donation). The DRMS R/T/D Process promotes the reuse, transfer, and donation of excess property or materials, which can save installations the cost of purchasing a new item. Property turned in to DRMOs around the world is subject to a screening and classification process that insures it is properly inventoried and readily available to customers for reutilization. Using a valid National Stock Number (NSN), DoD customers can request excess item product descriptions by accessing the DRMS Interrogation Requirements Information System (IRIS) or by searching a DRMS on-line database. DoD activities can then requisition property, free of charge, through the Military Standard Requisitioning and Issue Procedures (MILSTRIP) system. Each DRMO can assist customers with procedures for obtaining product descriptions and requisitioning. More information about searching the DRMS database and requisitioning is also available at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newrtd/html/property_search.shtml. The IRIS database search system and the MILSTRIP requisitioning system can be accessed (by ".mil" users only) at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newrtd/html/milstrip_tagging.html. Reutilization is an excellent source of supply for both mission-critical and support items. Every installation should consider the nearest DRMO as its first source of supply. General information on the R/T/D process is available from DRMOs and at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newrtd/html/r_t_d_process.html. In addition, to assist customers with R/T/D issues, the DRMS publishes "The DRMS Reutilization Advisory" newsletter available for viewing at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newrtd/html/reutilization_advisory.html. Excess property that cannot be reutilized, transferred, or donated is offered for sale to the general public through international, national, zone, and retail sales.
The Demilitarization Program Certain surplus military items must be rendered useless for their intended purpose prior to sale, recycling, or disposal. Examples of such items would be weapons, gas masks, and other items never meant to be used by the general civilian population. This process is known as demilitarization or "demil." The demilitarization program is a major part of the DRMS mission and prevents offensive and defensive military equipment from being released in operable condition to the public. When such items are turned in to DRMOs, an audit trail is established to verify, for national security reasons, that demilitarization was accomplished. When property is initially acquired by DoD, it is assigned a demilitarization code based on DoD-wide policy. Most items that enter the supply system receive a "no demil required" code. Items such as munitions or firearms receive demil codes that require a variety of actions such as burning, shredding, or pulping in order to render them useless. More information about demil codes and demilitarization can be found in PRO-ACT's July 1998 Fact Sheet "Demilitarization and Disposal of Chemical Defense Equipment," available at PRO-ACT's World Wide Web site http://www.afcee.brooks.af.mil/pro-act.
The Precious Metals Recovery Program Gold, silver, platinum, and other precious metals are critical elements in the many high-technology activities within America's military forces. These metals share common physical properties, primarily resistance to corrosion, which make them suitable for these applications. They are also valued in dollars per troy ounce and their recovery and reuse result in significant cost savings to DoD activities. The DRMS Precious Metals Recovery Program has saved the U.S. government $223 million over the last 20 years and the value of metals recovered remains substantial, saving millions of dollars annually. Precious metals can be recovered from items such as batteries, gold-plated buttons, insignias, eyeglass frames, photographic and X-ray film, photographic chemicals, and scrap electronic parts. Precious metal-bearing scrap is turned in to DRMOs, after which it may be sent to a refiner. The refined metal is then stored under the supervision of the Defense Industrial Supply Center (DISC). The refined metal can then be requisitioned by government activities. The Precious Metals Recovery Program is government-wide, and does not serve only DoD activities. Additional information on the Precious Metals Recovery Program can be found in PRO-ACT's April 1998 Fact Sheet "Silver Recovery from Photographic and Imaging Wastes," available at PRO-ACT's World Wide Web site http://www.afcee.brooks.af.mil/pro-act.
The Environmental Program DRMS manages the disposal of hazardous property for DoD activities. Once properly identified hazardous property is accepted for turn-in by a DRMO, DRMS pays for any costs associated with Notices of Violation (NOVs) and cleanup borne by the generator. DRMS is committed to ensuring that hazardous property received from military customers is handled properly, efficiently, and safely. A point of contact (POC) list provides the name, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of DRMS environmental specialists based on area of expertise. (A link to this list can be found at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newenv/html/env._services.html) Hazardous property is handled according to the same priorities as other turned-in property: reutilization within DoD, transfer to other federal agencies, donations to qualified state and nonprofit organizations, and sale to the public including recyclers. This process maximizes the use of each item and minimizes the environmental risks and the costs associated with disposition. DRMOs provide safe, temporary storage of hazardous property throughout the disposition cycle. Hazardous property is classified by DRMS as "material" or "waste." A hazardous material is any substance capable of posing a risk to health, safety, and property when transported. A hazardous waste includes any used hazardous material destined for disposal and is characterized as being flammable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic to living organisms as defined or listed in Title 40 CFR Part 261, "Identification and Listing of Hazardous Waste." Hazardous property that cannot be reused or sold is disposed of through commercial service contracts. These contracted disposal activities must comply with applicable federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations, including the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which requires "cradle to grave" management of hazardous property.
Turn-in of Hazardous Property
The Rapid Access to Information in DLA (RAID) system has provided audit trail and disposal cost information on all DoD hazardous waste disposed through DRMS since 1988.ÿ DRMS receives thousands of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and official requests each year for RAID information. By accessing a new WWW-based database, generators can obtain a report on all hazardous waste shipped through DRMS during 1997. More information about the turn-in and tracking of hazardous property is available from local DRMOs and at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newenv/html/hw_disposal.html.
Storage Of Hazardous Property
Excluded Items
DRMOs also do not accept regular "trash" (non-hazardous municipal solid waste), which is the responsibility of the installation and should be transported to a sanitary landfill.
Waste Minimization Programs
Hazardous Waste Disposal
More information about the DRMS Environmental Program is available at http://www.drms.dla.mil/newenv/index.html.
Questions on any DRMS program can be addressed to the DRMS Customer Call Center from 7a.m. to 5p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday, except federal holidays. The toll free number is (888) 352-9333. Customer support telephone numbers and information about all DRMO locations worldwide are available at http://www.drms.dla.mil/drmo/site/drmo.html. The DRMS Home page (http://www.drms.dla.mil/) is a very comprehensive and useful WWW site and contains links to many sources of DRMS information, guidance, and publications.
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