ITRC's 2003 spring team meetings were integrated with the 5th Environmental Technology Symposium & Workshop, sponsored by the Tri-Service Environmental Centers, USAEC, NFESC, AFCEE, and ITRC. Gathering more than 400 representatives from all ITRC federal partners, states, private industry, and the public, the symposium offered an excellent opportunity for all sectors to collaborate and network and provided regulatory guidance as well as a training forum for discussing environmental technology strategies, innovations, demonstrations, and products.

ITRC was successful in reaching out to our federal partners during this symposium by conducting six trainings: Small Arms, Natural Attenuation, Systematic Approaches to ISB, Diffusion/Passive Samplers, Advanced Permeable Reactive Barriers, and In Situ Chemical Oxidation. In addition, more than 35 ITRC members presented technical papers in the variety of technical sessions throughout the four-day event. During the event, more than 65 new members of ITRC participated in an orientation session on ITRC principles and practices conducted by several state points of contact, team leaders, and program advisors.

Through this event ITRC also had the opportunity to strengthen its understanding of environmental programs in the tri-services. During a plenary session, Ken Taylor and Brian Griffin, ITRC Co-Chairs, and Secretary William G. Ross, Jr. of North Carolina shared the floor with Colonel James M. DePaz, Commander, U.S. Army Environmental Center; Captain Richard O. Gamble, II, Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center; and Colonel Per A. Korslund, HQ Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence. In this session ITRC learned about the priorities of these organizations in addition to examples of benefits they have received through partnering with the ITRC. Specifically, the military representatives highlighted ITRC involvement in areas such as direct-push wells, diffusion samplers, remedial process optimization, enhanced bioremediation, and small arms ranges.

As a result of partnering this symposium, ITRC teams also had an increased opportunity to recruit federal members to their teams. This was the first meeting where newly appointed Department of Energy representatives attended ITRC team meetings for more than five teams. In addition, the increased presence of Army, Navy, Air Force, and Army Corps of Engineers personnel added strength to team meetings. Plenary speaker Colonel Korslund from the Air Force had the opportunity to discover the value of ITRC firsthand by participating in the Natural Attenuation training class.