For many service members, summer is a time for extended vacations, visiting family, barbeques and recreation. However, summertime is also a period that poses a greater risk for mishaps, according to the Department of Defense, who reported more than 80 percent of non-combat fatalities in 2012 occurred during the summer.

Although some accidents are unavoidable, alcohol-related incidents are avoidable. The Consolidated Substance Abuse Counseling Center aboard Quantico doesn’t want Marines and sailors to fall victim to the consequences related to avoidable alcohol incidents.

Milton Young, alcohol abuse prevention specialist at CSACC, said their goal is not to tell military members not to drink, rather to help them become educated drinkers.

“The biggest misconception among service members is their understanding of the amount of alcohol they’re consuming, which is usually how most people get in trouble,” Young said.

A standard drink is any drink that contains about 0.6 fluid ounces of pure alcohol. For beer that is generally 12 ounces, 8 ounces for malt liquor, 5 ounces for wine and 1.5 ounces for 80-proof distilled liquor. However, some alcoholic beverages can contain several standard drinks.

“[For example] If I ask a person how many drinks they’ve had and they say, ‘well I had three,’ OK, but if they drank three Long Island Ice Teas [which contains, Vodka, Rum, Tequila and Gin], that’s really 15 drinks,” Young added.

CSACC promotes “low-risk drinking,” which means two standard drinks, no more than three per day, and no more than three and no more than 14 within a week. Yet, these numbers can be tricky, because if a Marine consumes only one potent cocktail, such as a Long Island Ice Tea, which contains four standard drinks, it can put them over the limit.

The hope is that Marines and sailors become proactive with alcohol safety, lessening their risk of alcohol-related mishaps or abuse. The CSACC program provides an active alcohol and drug prevention campaign, which includes Professional Military Education sessions, counseling, treatment planning, aftercare and continuing care recommendations.

“We encourage [military members] to come forward before they have an incident, as well as before it’s been addressed by the command,” said Pamela Moment, drug demand reduction coordinator at CSACC.

In addition, the Marine Corps recently tightened their rules on alcohol abuse. The Alcohol Screening Program that launched December 2012 requires commands to randomly administer breathalyzer tests to Marines twice a year. A blood-alcohol content result of .01 percent subjects a Marine to counseling and a reading of .04 results in a “Fit for Duty” determination by fitness and medical staff. 

It’s a risk that can jeopardize a Marines career and pockets.

“Nowadays [in the Marine Corps], you can potentially spend $8,000 to $15,000 for a DUI,” Young said. “Additionally, a Non-Judicial Punishment could knock you down a rank, lowering your yearly salary.”

Alcohol abuse affects the entire Corps, said Jacqueline Williams, director of CSACC.

“Our overall goal is to adhere to the mission of the Marine Corps and return guys to the field healthy by providing prevention, substance abuse treatment and creating an atmosphere that lends itself to self referral,” Williams said.

Staff Writer: afelton@quanticosentryonline.com