The United States administration seeks to move the country further towards reliance on renewable energy technologies with the latest phase of its Climate Action Plan.
President Barack Obama has ordered the US federal government to almost treble its use of renewable energy within seven years, as part of his climate plan.
The President signed a memorandum instructing US federal agencies to boost their use of renewable energy from seven per cent currently to at least 10 per cent in 2015, 15 per cent in 2016/17, 17.5 per cent in 2018/19, and 20 per cent in 2020.
The targets build on an existing goal for the US military, which has seen the Defence Department commit to generating a quarter of its energy from renewable resources by 2025.
The memorandum gives federal agencies the freedom to decide whether to purchase renewable energy form suppliers, acquire renewable energy certificates, or install their own onsite renewable energy technologies.
The White House said the new goals would “reduce pollution in our communities, promote American energy independence, and support home grown energy produced by American workers”.
The announcement builds on President Obama’s high profile commitment to introduce new emissions standards for power plants through the Environmental Protection Agency.
It also follows a flurry of announcements this week designed to strengthen the government’s Climate Action Plan.
Most notably, the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced an expansion of the Better Buildings Challenge earlier this week.
That will extend funding for energy efficiency upgrades to multifamily housing such as apartments and condominiums and also launched the Better Buildings Accelerators to support state and local government efforts to cut energy waste.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Agriculture announced it is to provide rural electricity cooperatives with up to $250 million to lend to business and residential customers to help fund energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy deployments.
