Primers

The primers series is designed to facilitate a better understanding among all stakeholders, including military installation leadership, state, regional and local government officials, land trusts, and communities. These primers provide tools and suggestions for establishing and maintaining effective relationships and partnerships to address the challenges of encroachment. By working together, these stakeholders can find mutually beneficial solutions to encroachment and other sustainability issues.

To request hardcopies, please contact us and provide your name, mailing address, and a phone number where we may contact you if we have any questions. Don’t forget to specify which primer(s) and number of copies you would like to receive.

Available Primers:
  • Collaborative Land Use Planning: A Guide for Military Installations and Local Governments
  • Commander’s Guide to Community Involvement
  • Commander’s Guide to Renewable Energy
  • Commander's Guide to Understanding and Supporting Working Forests
  • The Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program Buffer Partnerships
  • Outreach for Mission Sustainability: Working to Balance Military and Civilian Community Needs
  • Working to Preserve Farm, Forest and Ranch Lands: A Guide for Military Installations
  • Working with Conservation Districts: A Guide for Military Installations
  • Working with Land Trusts: A Guide for Military Installations and Land Trusts
  • Working with Local Governments: A Practical Guide for Installations
  • Working with Regional Councils: A Guide for Installations
  • Working with State Legislators: A Guide for Military Installations and State Legislators

 

 

Building Resilience to Climate Change Through Off-Base Natural Infrastructure Solutions

Developed by the REPI Office, this REPI resilience primer provides information on how the REPI program can be used to implement natural infrastructure solutions to help military installations and ranges and surrounding communities adapt to climate change.  This primer includes a background on how climate change is affecting the Department of Defense, how installations and partners can develop REPI resilience projects, and examples of successful resilience projects.
 

Download (3.43 MB PDF), Interactive Version

Collaborative Land Use Planning: A Guide for Military Installations and Local Governments

Military installations and Regional Councils share the responsibility to ensure that the presence of an installation within a community does not have negative impacts. This primer is designed to help collaboration between Regional Councils and the installation commander and his staff on jurisdictional and military infrastructure and resource needs.

Download (6.03MB PDF)

Commander’s Guide to Community Involvement

The purpose of this primer is to provide commanders the information they need to work effectively with the community to protect the military’s current and future mission. This document provides a brief overview and is not meant to be an exhaustive resource.

Download (7.24MB PDF)
 
  

Commander's Guide to Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is a national imperative as well as a national security issue. This primer is designed to help DoD officials and installation commanders gain a better understanding of the types of renewable energy projects; their potential impacts to the mission; and the processes for planning, reviewing, and approving the projects. 

Download (5.40MB PDF)

Commander's Guide to Understanding and Supporting Working Forests

Over the past two decades, changes in the forest sector have resulted in more and more working forests being sold and converted to other uses.  Protecting working forests adjacent to military installations can safeguard buffer zones to enhance flexibility in military testing and training, provide habitat for protected and at-risk species, protect drinking water supplies, and support the local economy.  This primer describes the economic and environmental benefits of working forests, ways to ensure their continued utility to military installations, and resources for further information.

Download (0.90MB PDF)

The Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program Buffer Partnerships

REPI helps fund cost-sharing partnerships among the Military Departments, private conservation groups, and state and local governments to protect compatible land use and preserving natural habitat on non-DoD lands. This primer is intended as an introduction for land trusts, state or local governments, and other potential partners. Military installation personnel who are unfamiliar with REPI may also find it useful.

Download (1.34MB), Interactive Version
 

Outreach for Mission Sustainability: Working to Balance Military and Civilian Community Needs

This primer is meant to enhance, at a quick glance, military and civilian understanding of the impact that encroachment pressures can have on military training and overall mission sustainability. It also offers a template for the military to develop an outreach program by bringing together all of the stakeholders that care about an issue or are affected by it, including representatives from the military; local community; other national, regional, or local government officials; non-governmental organizations; and any other interested parties. 

Download (4.96MB PDF)

Working to Preserve Farm, Forest and Ranch Lands: A Guide for Military Installations

This primer is useful for installation commanders and communities to see the connection between protecting working landscapes and buffering military bases from incompatible land use. With information on local land use options, federal conservation programs, and other partnership opportunities, the primer identifies a wide variety of programs to protect America’s working landscapes. 

Download (4.37MB PDF)

Working with Conservation Districts: A Guide for Military Installations

Conservation districts are local units of state government working to increase voluntary conservation practices among farmers, ranchers, and other land users; they have the ability to amplify the military’s efforts to promote compatible land use. This primer is designed to help DoD officials and installation commanders gain a better understanding of how conservation districts operate in making land-use and other natural resources decisions that may affect military operations, as well as to facilitate communications and potential collaboration. 

Download (3.95MB PDF)

Working with Land Trusts: A Guide for Military Installations and Land Trusts

This primer is designed to provide military installation leaders with insight and understanding of land trusts and how they use land purchases and conservation easements to address encroachment and urban growth. By partnering with land trusts, the military can keep encroachment to a minimum near the installation fence line, while protecting important natural resources and maintaining agricultural and recreational lands. 

Download (6.33MB PDF)

Working with Local Governments: A Practical Guide for Installations

The purpose of this primer is to offer suggestions and solutions for installation management when working with local governments. By engaging with local government officials, both formally and informally, the results will be cohesive, mutually beneficial regulations that are advantageous for the installation and community. 

Download (3.22MB PDF)
  

Working with Regional Councils: A Guide for Installations

Through Regional Councils, the military can provide local governments with information about its operations to help them assess the impacts on community planning decisions at both the local and regional scale. This primer is designed to give installation leadership background information on Regional Councils and how they can help the military better understand regional planning and its potential impacts to the military mission and find mutually beneficial solutions to common issues. 

Download (5.59MB PDF)

Working with State Legislatures: A Guide for Military Installations and State Legislatures

Both states and the military face significant challenges from urban growth and development and must balance competing interests. This guide provides information to enhance the military’s understanding of state legislatures and suggests resources and tools for engaging with legislators in compatible land use planning to meet sustainability challenges with mutually beneficial solutions. 

Download (3.04MB PDF)