[CPEO-MEF] Oil reliance "strains military"

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Pentagon study says oil reliance strains military
Urges development of alternative fuels

By Bryan Bender
Boston Globe Staff
May 1, 2007

WASHINGTON -- A new study ordered by the Pentagon warns that the rising 
cost and dwindling supply of oil -- the lifeblood of fighter jets, 
warships, and tanks -- will make the US military's ability to respond to 
hot spots around the world "unsustainable in the long term."

The study, produced by a defense consulting firm, concludes that all 
four branches of the military must "fundamentally transform" their 
assumptions about energy, including taking immediate steps toward 
fielding weapons systems and aircraft that run on alternative and 
renewable fuels. It is "imperative" that the Department of Defense 
"apply new energy technologies that address alternative supply sources 
and efficient consumption across all aspects of military operations," 
according to the report, which was provided to the Globe.

Weaning the military from fossil fuels quickly, however, would be a 
herculean task -- especially because the bulk of the US arsenal, the 
world's most advanced, is dependent on fossil fuels and many of those 
military systems have been designed to remain in service for at least 
several decades.

Moving to alternative energy sources on a large scale would "challenge 
some of the department's most deeply held assumptions, interests, and 
processes," the report acknowledges.

...

For the entire article, see
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/05/01/pentagon_study_says_oil_reliance_strains_military/?p1=email_to_a_friend

--


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org


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