A Sticky Situation: Tar Sands, Alternative Fuels, Energy Security and the EISA Section 526 Petroleum Procurement Problem

Surya Gablin Gunasekara, Defense Logistics Agency Energy

Abstract

The Department of Defense (DOD) is one of the world’s single largest consumers of energy. To support two wars in hostile parts of the world, the DOD’s energy procuring agency, the Defense Logistics Agency Energy (DLA Energy), has been forced into the difficult position of doing business with sheikdoms and petro-dictatorships. This dependence on foreign oil, and the critical need for energy security, has prompted several legislative initiatives aimed at promoting renewable energy and alternative fuels. While much of this legislation has been transformative for DOD energy policy, one provision, in application, has complicated the petroleum procurement process. This article examines the Energy Independence and Security Act § 526 as it applies to Canadian oil sands crude and analyzes the recent Sierra Club challenge to DLA Energy procurements of this nonconventional petroleum source.