Former U.S. admirals and generals have submitted signed documents that warn the U.S. military's dependence on foreign oil and an undependable electrical grid compromise U. S. security.The document claims that a portion of the fuel imported by the U.S. military was basically a conveyor of wealth to countries linked with terrorism. The report recommends the development of alternative fuel sources.

The military is taking the situation seriously and attacking the problem in multiple ways.

One way is represented by a buoy anchored in 100 feet of water, bouncing around in the heaving, churning waves and swells about a mile off Kaneohe Bay Marine Corps Base in Hawaii. It is no ordinary buoy. It has a piston-like apparatus within it that converts the energy of the movement of the ocean into energy that is sent via an underwater cable to the power grid on the base.

Ocean Power Technologies, or OPT, has won the support of both the Navy and the Marine Corps, and currently three of its buoys are jostling around in the ocean, sending roughly 3 to 4 kilowatts of energyback to land, and sending information from multiple sensors to the OPT headquarters in New Jersey.

Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus has been quoted as saying, "This project demonstrates the Navy and Marine Corps' commitment to lead the country toward a new energy future. Of the five energy targets I issued in 2009, the most important is that by 2020, half of all the energy we use - ashore and afloat, in the air, on the sea, under the sea and on land - will come from alternative sources. In order to end our reliance on fossil fuels, we must continue to invest in projects such as ocean energy. In doing so, we will improve our energy security, increase our energy independence, and help build a new clean energy economy. " 

The Navy has funded the project with at $300,000 and a contract for $3 million so far.