The American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE) today offered its full support to the newly formed Congressional Defense Energy Working Group co-chaired by Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R-6th-MD) and Congressman Steve Israel (D-2nd-NY).

Washington, DC - The American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE) today offered its full support to the newly formed Congressional Defense Energy Working Group co-chaired by Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R-6th-MD) and Congressman Steve Israel (D-2nd-NY). Congressman Bartlett is Chairman of the Project Forces Sub-Committee, of the Armed Services Committee. Congressman Israel is also a member of those committees.

"These members of Congress have fully recognized the serious threat of our growing dependence on imported oil to the United States and its economy, and are taking critically important actions to deal with these threats," stated Michael Eckhart, President, ACORE. "The Department of Defense is not only the biggest US Governmental consumer of energy but also leads in the promotion and usage of all forms of renewable energy. We salute the military services for their leadership and the Congressional Defense Energy Working Group for adding a power dimension to this team work."

"The fact is that nearly every military challenge we face is either derived from or impacted by one thing: our reliance on fossil fuels and foreign energy sources," said Congressman Israel. "In a world where we borrow money from China to purchase oil from unstable Persian Gulf countries to fuel our Air Force planes that protect us against potential threats from these very countries, it's high-time to make the choices and investments necessary to protect our country."

"The military's dependence upon oil underscores that energy poses a generational threat to America's national security," added Congressman Bartlett.

Jim Woolsey, Chair of the Pentagon's Policy Panel of the Defense Science Board on Department of Defense Energy Strategy, and Advisory Board Member of ACORE, will also serve on the Congressional Defense Working Group. In addition, he will be participating in the ACORE Phase II policy meeting from November 29-30 and an energy security forum at the National Defense University later this year. Members of ACORE will be instrumental in conducting both forums.

Mr. Eckhart concluded by saying, "It is becoming increasingly clear to the American people that we must deal with our 'addiction' to oil and other fossil fuels. The renewable energy technologies are becoming a powerful factor to ending that addiction. We look forward to working with the Congress and the Department of Defense in meeting the goals for renewables being set by a wide range of organizations including the 25X'25 campaign."