With Great Military Power Comes the Need for Great Energy Efficiency
io9, May 1, 2014Two Democratic lawmakers have introduced new legislation to push military operations to be more energy efficient and rely less on fossil fuels. Their goal, they say, is not only to save money for spending elsewhere in the Pentagon’s budget, but to reduce the need for fuel convoys and reduce troops’ exposure to harm.
The bill, called the Department of Defense Energy Security Act of 2014, was announced yesterday by Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) and Representative Scott Peters (D-CA), who said that, “Military reliance on fossil fuels is a national security issue.” Since 2001, more than 3,000 men and women in uniform have been killed or wounded in attacks on fuel convoys in Afghanistan.