By Amaani Lyle
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON – The Army and Air Force are committed to developing
one billion watts of renewable energy on their installations by 2025, senior
leaders from both services announced yesterday.
The plan marks the latest milestone in a
multi-year endeavor to find ways to make the military more energy efficient,
said Katherine Hammack, assistant secretary of the Army for installations,
energy and environment, and Terry Yonkers, assistant secretary of the Air Force
for installations, environment and logistics.
One gigawatt, a unit of power equal to
one billion watts, can power about 250,000 homes, Hammack explained.
Energy security drives the initiatives,
Hammack said, adding that increased usage of renewable energy -- such as solar
power -- on military installations would enable them to operate even if local
power grids go down.
“Right now, the bases operate off of a
nationwide electric grid, which, as populations grow, is getting aged and
vulnerable,” Hammack said. “This is a move toward distributed energy where
you’re generating [it] at the point of use.”
The Army Corps of Engineers will work
with the two services to assess land and resources and to determine energy
transmission capabilities, Hammack said.
As the technology develops, she said,
renewable energy steps will include the installation of solar paneling on
military base buildings and vehicle garages, and dual-usage of the panels as
land buffers.
Biofuels will be a behind-the-scenes
game changer for the Air Force, according to Yonkers, who lauded the seminal
research of alternative fuels at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
“These biofuels don’t produce the kind
of soot that conventional crude oil-derived fuels produce,” Yonkers said,
adding that this results in a cooler-running engine, which reduces metal
fatigue and increases engine life.
“If you can reduce the temperature in
the combustion chamber of an engine by as little as a hundred degrees, you can
get 10,000 hours or more on those parts that compose that engine,” Yonkers
said.
As the United States continues to seek
ways to reduce dependency on imported oil, biofuels could play a large part in
the transition while reducing the cost to taxpayers, he said.
“Maintenance costs will go down
substantially. We can keep those engines on[-line] much longer and the overall
cost of doing business with the Air Force goes down,” Yonkers said.
Private sector financing will be the
linchpin of the services’ energy endeavors through power purchase agreements,
enhanced use leasing, energy savings performance contracts and utility energy
savings contracts, Yonkers explained.
New sources of clean energy will vary
among installations, he said, and will include solar, wind, biomass and
geothermal developments.
The desired end result of these
advances, Yonkers said, is to “reduce demand, increase supply and change the
culture of how airmen and soldiers consider energy.”
The Army will host the Army-Air Force
Energy Forum July 12 in Arlington, Va.
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