The U.S. Air Force protects the skies, but it may soon have the capacity to protect the environment as well.

The Mitchell Daily Republic (SD) reported this week that South Dakota Senator John Thune is looking to ensure that B-1B bombers are using wood waste and crop-based fuel “sooner than you might think possible.” He has included a provision in the recent Defense Authorization bill that provides $4 million for research into developing alternative fuels and sets as a goal that the Air Force acquire half of its domestic fuel requirement from a domestically sources synthetic fund.  The Air Force already has its own goal of using 50 percent alternative fuels by as soon as 2011.

These moves could also help the Air Force cut costs as well.  As the paper notes, the USAF spends an extra $600 million for fuel for every $10 increase in the price of oil.

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