Citing the US military’s carbon emissions footprint, a group of senior Senate Democrats officially introduced a bill on Monday that would require the Pentagon to buy electric vehicles starting later this year. The Military Vehicle Fleet Electrification Act, which was spearheaded by Elizabeth Warren (D.Massachusetts), and Mazie Irono (D.Hawaii), would be applicable to all military vehicles. “non-tactical”Starting in the fiscal year 2023, cars, vans and light-duty trucks can be bought or leased from or by the Department of Defense (DOD).
“Transitioning the military’s non-tactical fleet of vehicles to electric or other zero-emission vehicles would have a significant impact on the US government’s greenhouse gas emissions,”Warren stated this in a statement that announced the bill. “This is an effective solution that helps us tackle the climate crisis and keeps the military ready for the future,”She added.
Hirono called for the proposal “a critical step in reducing our government’s carbon emissions”And that they would. “help combat climate change while helping to ensure our military has the advantages of a modern fleet of vehicles that reduces the military’s dependence on oil.”
Dick Durbin, Senate Majority Whip (D.Illinois), Senators Ed Markey(D-Massachusetts), Sheldon Whitehouse [D-Rhode Island]), and Angus King (“I-Vermont”) co-sponsored this bill with the intention of making it part the National Defense Authorization Act. (NDAA).
“The US Postal Service and other federal agencies must also transition to an electric vehicle fleet, and I plan to see the military do the same for non-tactical vehicles,”John Garamendi, a Democratic congressman from California who presented the House bill’s version in April, said.
The proposal states that at least 3 out of 4 non-tactical military vehicles purchased or leased from the DOD by October 2022 would need to be the aforementioned. “electric or zero-emission” kind. The electric versions would have to be used as well. “nonproprietary, interoperable charging ports and connectors,”With batteries and other components that were sourced from the US and its allies. “hostile foreign countries like the People’s Republic of China or Russia.”
This also authorizes the Pentagon to grant private charging stations access to military installations. It also allows them to reprogramme up to $6 million of unspecified funding to these projects. “support electric vehicle charging station infrastructure”Bases
The DOD, which currently has more than 174,000 nontactical vehicles in operation, is the second-largest federal fleet, after the Postal Service, according to official figures. The US military is also the world’s largest institutional consumer of petroleum. According to Forbes 2008 estimates, the M1 Abrams Tank, a tactical vehicle, uses almost 2 gallons per mile.
A sustainability study by the Biden administration published in December 2021 claimed that 56% of the federal government’s total greenhouse gas emissions come from the military. The average US gas price for a gallon was $5.01 on Monday, an increase of $3.08 from a year earlier.
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