Energy Backlog

Defense Environment Alert is reporting today that a recent change in federal law has prompted the Defense Department to launch an aggressive push to tackle the backlog of wind and solar projects across the country that have are seen as potentially in conflict with military activities, according to a DOD energy official. Specifically:

The effort to review the military's potential conflicts with more than 290 renewable energy projects proposed by wind and solar energy developers responds to amendments passed in the Fiscal Year 2011 Defense Authorization Act that require DOD to preliminarily review within 180 days renewable-energy project applications sent to the Transportation Department, in order to assess potential adverse impacts on the military.

The legislation, signed into law by President Obama Jan. 7, sets out new tools for the department to use to identify potential conflicts early on with renewable-energy projects and quickly remedy them. The tools include developing an integrated review process with other agencies to ensure timely notification and consideration of renewable-energy projects, developing procedures for early outreach to parties carrying out projects, and developing a comprehensive strategy to address military impacts of renewable-energy projects filed with the Transportation Department.

The law also states that only certain senior Pentagon officials can file objections with the DOT over a renewable-energy project, and can do so only after fully considering mitigation actions and determining that the project nonetheless poses unacceptable risk to national security.

In response, DOD is undertaking efforts to narrow the backlog of potentially conflicting projects.

The military launched the effort two weeks ago with a two-day conference at Hill Air Force Base, UT, where subject matter experts from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff and the services, along with the Bureau of Land Management, convened to review the backlogged projects -- those in which the military had raised an objection to a project with BLM or the Federal Aviation Administration within the past few years, according to the director of DOD's energy siting clearinghouse, David Belote, in a March 9 interview. Belote and a North American Aerospace Defense Command official co-hosted the conference.

The analysis entailed reviews by three groups of subject matter experts. One panel examined impacts of each project to military test and evaluation capabilities, a second group looked at impacts to readiness and training capabilities, and a third considered impacts to long-range radar and border surveillance, according to Belote. The groups reviewed about 170 of the approximately 291 projects, he said.

The groups applied the coordinates of proposed wind and solar projects against military areas such as military training routes, bases and special use airspace, according to Belote.

Within 30 days, DOD expects to publish a list, following further review, of those projects where DOD has no objections so the FAA, BLM and developers will know which ones are free of military hazards. At this point, Belote said, of the 170 reviewed, roughly 80 may not warrant an objection. More study is needed for some, while four of the reviewed projects would likely cause a significant impact to military capabilities, he added.

The changes passed into the FY-11 defense authorization law "made it very clear that the burden of proof is on us" to do a significant amount of work looking at the potential conflicts, Belote said. While the new law recognizes the serious issues that might arise with a project, it calls on DOD to be aggressive about doing its "homework" before blocking any renewable energy projects, he said.

Congress also is requiring DOD to report by March 15 of every year through 2015 on actions it has taken the previous year to implement the provisions of the amendments. This includes reporting on the results of its reviews of any renewable-energy projects filed with the Transportation Department that DOD determines pose a national security risk and should be flagged as a hazard.

The amendments address a growing issue for the military, as the construction of renewable-energy projects in the private and public sector rise. While DOD has been a strong proponent of alternative and renewable-energy development, including for its own needs, it has faced significant conflicts over some civilian projects involving wind and solar energy due to feared interference with military activities, such as radar interference. In response, DOD established the central clearinghouse headed by Belote within OSD to evaluate whether proposed renewable-energy siting projects will interfere with mission capabilities across the department.