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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Navy on Tuesday unveiled a climate strategy aimed at making energy more resilient to changes such as rising sea levels and coastal erosion, and moving faster toward low-carbon fuels and hybrid engines for ships and aircraft.
Climate Action 2030 Plan https://www.navy.mil/Portals/1/Documents/Department%20of%20the%20Navy%20Climate%20Action%202030.pdf?ver=ScwuxX5mGr9jXT1ewRvlxd%36%36%363 36% 35300% Biden administration’s larger goal is to decarbonize the economy by 2050.
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“By building a climate-ready force, our sailors and marines will be able to fight and conquer anywhere in the world in any situation,” Meredith Burger, the Navy’s assistant secretary of energy, installation and environment, told reporters.
Among the naval bases in Norfolk, Virginia and San Diego, California, and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in South Carolina, Paris Island Hall are the most vulnerable to fires due to rising sea, high temperatures, flooding and climate change. I
The plan offers little detail on how to reduce emissions or switch to alternative fuels. It did, however, encourage officials to report to Secretary of the Navy Carlos del Toro within 90 days on ways to strengthen infrastructure, adapt to the climate, and reduce emissions and fuel costs.
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Berger points to the USS Makin Island, an amphibious assault ship deployed in 2009 that uses GE hybrid systems, including electric and natural gas or diesel-powered turbines, to enhance efficiency as an example of ways to reduce fuel dependence.
“Hybridization is something with which we’ve seen some good results, but there’s also a lot of improvement in technology,” Burger said.
The plan comes at a time of growing energy costs for the military, the largest consumer of energy in the United States. The Pentagon’s controller said in a congressional hearing last month that the cost of fuel for the armed forces would be $ 3 billion more than planned for this fiscal year.
As an example of efficiency, the plan mentions the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, the first Department of Defense base to generate more energy than it costs, thanks to the use of nearby landfills and methane, a fuel produced by steam. From an industrial factory, and solar and geothermal energy.
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The Navy has had mixed success with moving to alternative fuels. In 2009 the service announced a Great Green Fleet with the goal of getting half the energy and power from fossil fuel alternatives such as advanced biofuels by 2020, but the plan was very low.
Meredith said the Navy is working with the energy industry at a “survey stage” to understand what types of alternative fuels are available but the driving force always ensures that the Navy and Marine Corps “create missions.”
There was no estimate of how much the plan would cost. The Navy’s FY 2023 budget includes $ 718 million to fight climate change.
Switching to alternative fuels can save money over time, Meredith says.
“Not only are we going to reduce our costs, we are also going to reduce our dependence, we will have energy sources that are more reliable,” he said. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner Editing Margurita Choice)
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