The Department’s wind generation capacity is approximately six megawatts.

The most recent system came on line in March 2009 at Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, Calif. The 1.5 megawatt wind turbine is expected to generate an average of 3,000 megawatt hours of renewable power each year, replace at least a third of the base’s brown power requirement with green power, and serve as a symbol of the Marine Corps’ commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants associated with the production of electricity and the burning of fossil fuels.

The Department partnered with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to identify additional sites for wind energy development. A number of anemometers have been installed to test the resource and are currently collecting data to verify actual wind speeds.