10/10/15, 1:56 PMPut our veterans to work with a sound tradition investment in infrastructure modernization - Portland Business Journal

Page 1 of 2http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/sbo/2013/12/sound-infrastructure-investments-will.html?s=print

From the Portland Business Journal:http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/sbo/2013/12/sound-infrastructure-investments-will.html

Sound infrastructure investments willprovide work for veteransDec 23, 2013, 3:57pm PST

Nathan Sandvig

After more than a decade at war protecting our energy security interests abroad, the U.S. militaryis redeploying and downsizing significant forces into a politically dysfunctional and stagnanteconomy.

Our home front faces many challenges and ripe opportunities. At the top of this list is our decrepitinfrastructure that provides life, commerce and underwrites our economy. These civil works areseverely stressed to meet today’s needs amidst a growing population, finite natural resources and achanging climate.

To address this challenge, our military is best poised to capitalize on our veterans’ skills andexperience entrusted with managing large capital projects and rebuilding the civil infrastructure ofAfghanistan and Iraq.

Infrastructure – specifically energy and water – is the most important component of the U.S.economy. Largely taken for granted with a flick of switch, turn of the faucet or by hitting “send,”the growth in prosperity of the country’s citizens depends on its uninterrupted performance andsustainable development.

Because the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates, maintains, and manages about one thirdof the nation’s water resource assets and is the largest producer of affordable renewable energy,the Civil Works program within the Department of Defense is best suited to tackle the desperateneed for modernization of existing infrastructure.

Much of our facilities are approaching the end of their original life. Reliability is decreasing andcybersecurity risk increasing along with long and costly forced outages.

However, instead of costly weapons systems burdened by the cost of energy and logistics deployedabroad, the military can focus and prioritize resources to rehabilitate this deterioratinginfrastructure and national assets now as the military struggles to find purpose in a broke countryfatigued by war.

10/10/15, 1:56 PMPut our veterans to work with a sound tradition investment in infrastructure modernization - Portland Business Journal

Page 2 of 2http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/sbo/2013/12/sound-infrastructure-investments-will.html?s=print

By promoting and investing in modernization, efficiency and innovation of this energy and wateraged infrastructure, the U.S. can continue to generate significant low-cost clean energy efficiently,integrate and enhance intermittent renewables on an unprecedented scale, strengthen our electricgrid’s resiliency, improve the flow of goods necessary for global trade and create jobs all to growour economy.

Most importantly, investing in this “all hands job” restores and gives purpose to two of our mostvaluable assets – antiquated civil works built decades ago and our returning battle-tested leaders.