MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE Albany, Ga. became the first base in the Department of Defense to achieve Net Zero during a ceremony on May 24, 2022 in which Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment (EI&E), and Commandant of the Marine Corps, General David Berger cut the ribbon to mark this occasion.
"MCLB Albany is the first installation in the entire Department of Defense to achieve Net Zero energy, generating more energy than it consumes by implementing a range of climate friendly solutions," Secretary of the Navy
Carlos Del Toro said. "I am proud of the work accomplished at MCLB Albany working in close coordination with a variety of partners in making this base more resilient, saving of taxpayer dollars, and being better equipped to fulfill its primary mission: ensuring Marines around the world have what they need to fight and win."
Net Zero is defined as the production of as much electricity from renewable "green" energy sources as it consumes from its utility provider and is measured over the course of the year.
"MCLB Albany not only provides strategic value to Marine Corps warfighters through sustainment and modernization, but now boasts the impressive achievement of the first Net Zero installation in the Department of Defense," Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David H. Berger said. "This is the result of years-long efforts of hard working leaders at the base."
"This is tremendous work by everyone on base," Col. Michael Fitzgerald, commanding officer, MCLB Albany, said. "The base can be self-reliant in terms of energy with the resources we have available."
It also provides MCLB Albany a buffer to fall back on when natural disasters, like the EF3 tornado that struck the base in January 2017, knocks down electrical infrastructure.
"The Marine Corps is proactively investing in efficient new facilities infrastructure through partnerships with private industry to improve the energy security posture of its installations and to deliver energy resilient capabilities," Marine Corps Installations Command Public Works Director Walter Ludwig said. "This means our installations will be able to maintain essential functions and critical services during a prolonged outage, ensuring the success of the warfighter."
On average, MCLB Albany's consumption peak is 4-6 megawatts in winter and 8-11 megawatts in the summer. The power consumption difference by season is why NET Zero is measured over the course of a year.
The base has two landfill gas generators that produce 4 megawatts.
The biomass steam turbine generator located at the nearby Procter & Gamble plant generates 8.5MW of energy with the steam generated from burning biomass.
The base also has 27 diesel backup generators that generate a total of 7 MW of power.
"MCLB Albany's load-shedding and peak shaving capabilities, island-mode operations and innovative energy technologies, including a biomass steam turbine, landfill gas generators and advanced micro-grid controls make it a leader in simultaneously achieving 'Net Zero' climate and energy resilience goals," Ludwig added.
The MCLB Albany Energy Program began in 2005 with the goal of making the installation the first in the Marine Corps to reach Net Zero.
Date Taken: | 05.24.2022 |
Date Posted: | 05.25.2022 10:07 |
Story ID: | 421477 |
Location: | ALBANY, GEORGIA, US |
Web Views: | 327 |
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