Sen. Joe Manchin's environmental permitting overhaul may not have made it into the National Defense Authorization Act, but the must-pass defense bill contains another provision with huge implications for energy. The Defense Department would have to shift all non-combat vehicles to alternative fuels by 2035 under the current version of the NDAA. That encompasses as many as 180,000 vehicles — no small potatoes, despite the requirement's exclusion of tanks and other vehicles used for war. The provision builds on years of work by Congress and the executive branch to limit the climate impact of the U.S. military, arguably the world's single worst polluter as the largest institutional consumer of petroleum. In 2017, the DoD emitted more greenhouse gases than many small industrialized countries , including Sweden and Finland. "It's time for the military to get on with the future," said Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.), one of the authors of the provision . The policy rider is one of many in the defense bill, which like all must-pass legislation has become a catch-all for lawmakers' priorities. That's why Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, wanted to use the bill to pass his proposal to fast-track the permitting of energy and infrastructure projects. Opposition from both progressives and Republicans has doomed that effort . Manchin is still trying to get a vote on his permitting bill before the end of this year, but his chances look slim . In addition to the alternative fuel provision, the current version of the NDAA carries the Water Resources Development Act, which would broaden the mission of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to let it work on new kinds of climate change adaptation projects. That could help coastal and Great Lakes states deal with the impacts of sea-level rise and shoreline erosion. The NDAA passed the House on Thursday, and the Senate is expected to clear it before the end of the year. Here's how the DoD provision will likely play out: The department can switch its non-combat vehicles to run on electricity, hydrogen or biofuels. But it is likely to favor electric vehicles, because that's the direction the commercial market is going, said a Senate aide who worked on the bill and was granted anonymity to discuss the provision candidly. Electric vehicles used on base also have tactical benefits, the aide said, because they operate quietly and can plug into the grid to be used as a backup power source. That helped garner bipartisan support as the House and Senate Armed Services committees negotiated the bill, according to the aide. "Greenhouse gas emissions reduction is a benefit, but the primary function was geared towards the mission," the aide said. Garamendi predicts the military will jump on the opportunity to go electric — and be interested in hybrid and electric combat vehicles, as well. The provision essentially codifies the direction the Pentagon is already headed, as it works to meet Biden administration directives to reduce the federal government's emissions.
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment