Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., Rep. Mondaire Jones, D-N.Y., and other Congress members ask President Joe Biden to not exclude the Department of Defense from an executive order that aims to reduce the federal government’s carbon emissions.
The letter, which was issued on Friday, stated that DOD is the largest energy consumer in the U.S., and exempting the department from the order would make it more difficult to achieve the nation’s carbon reduction goals.
The Executive Order on Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability urges a whole-of-government approach with the goal of achieving 100 percent carbon pollution-free electricity by 2030.
The Congress members said in the letter that exempting DOD would lessen the chances of preventing climate change-driven catastrophes and meeting obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement.
The White House’s Federal Sustainability Plan released in December 2021 states that the DOD produces 56 percent of federal government emissions.
Lawmakers who have signed the letter also include Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn.