Army Will Centralize Environmental Services Work The Army plans to consolidate several thousand environmental services contracts into three nationwide task order contracts in a strategic sourcing initiative. About two-thirds of the contracts are now being performed by 460 small businesses, according to an Army Environmental Command briefing paper obtained by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, an advocacy group. The document says the consolidation “[e]liminates numerous contractors.” The Army said it will include a small business strategy in its acquisition plan, but the paper gives no details. Army officials did not respond to requests for comment. An official of the Army Environmental Command told Government Executive magazine the consolidation will be phased in beginning next September. PEER’s executive director, Jeff Ruch, said some base commanders and officials of the Army’s Installation Management Command are resisting the plan because they don’t want to lose control of the contracts, which are now awarded locally or regionally. The Environmental Command said its goals are to increase competition; use best-in-class vendors; eliminate fees paid to the Corps of Engineers for managing many of the current contracts; and reduce the time it takes to award task orders. The paper cites a disparity of up to 100% in prices paid for the same services at different installations. According to the briefing material, the Environmental Command plans to create three multiple award IDIQ contracts, each running five years: advisory and assistance services, worth up to $400 million; environmental compliance, $240 million; and cultural and natural resources, $200 million. Environmental cleanup is not included in the plan. Companies that are awarded the contracts will compete for task orders. The Army spent about $135 million on those services in 2005, with nearly two-thirds of that going to compliance. It projects savings of around $20 million through strategic sourcing. PEER said, “This super-centralization may cause dramatic decreases in flexibility, accountability and quality that will more than wipe out any envisioned cost savings.” PEER opposes contracting out environmental services.