The Department of the Navy is switching to renewable energy on land at a rate that’s five years ahead of schedule. That’s good for the environment and for sailors and Marines, who should be safer with fewer oil convoys to defend. Before the Navy set a goal of relying on renewables for half its fuel, “we were losing a Marine killed or wounded for every 50 convoys of fuel we moved into Afghanistan,” Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus said in May in California. Its so-called “Great Green Fleet” has featured a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and flotilla of accompanying ships steaming on a mixture of diesel and biofuel.
More Must-Reads From TIME
- The 100 Most Influential People of 2024
- How Far Trump Would Go
- Scenes From Pro-Palestinian Encampments Across U.S. Universities
- Saving Seconds Is Better Than Hours
- Why Your Breakfast Should Start with a Vegetable
- 6 Compliments That Land Every Time
- Welcome to the Golden Age of Ryan Gosling
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Write to Olivia B. Waxman at olivia.waxman@time.com