The Defense Department’s comprehensive review of 249 proposed renewable energy projects involving approximately 6,500 wind turbines and 30 solar projects in 35 states and Puerto Rico found that 229 would have little or no impact on military missions. Those findings clear the way for those 229 projects to move forward, yielding more than 10 additional gigawatts of renewable energy generation capacity for the US military in the future, according to DOD’s release. “These new energy projects will increase the nation’s energy security while ensuring that our military services have the test capabilities, training venues, and equipment to help keep America safe,” reads the release. Defense officials will further study the 20 projects found to pose potential adverse effects in order to see if DOD, a leading federal agency in pursuing renewable energy, could mitigate those effects so that those projects could move forward, too. (Energy projects full list)
After a long period in which munitions were almost an afterthought and sacrificed to pay for other priorities, the Air Force needs to focus on them in order to have the right “package” of capabilities for future conflicts, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. said June 7.