An article in the Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/apr/20/us-navy-green 20 April 2010) states that fuel costs for the military in war zones is $ 400 per gallon. The Navy will launch its “Great Green Fleet” – a collection of ships, planes and submarines powered by biofuel. With the US military accounting for 80 % of US government fuel consumption, these changes can have a significant impact on government carbon footprint. But a related article by Jim Jubelirer ( http://www.sustainablelifemedia.com/content/column/strategy/green_friends_in_unexpected_places) summarizes an executive order EO 13514 by President Obama that sets specific targets for sustainability by the US government.  If all of these changes get implemented by the US government, will it permit a base demand that can provide break even funds to stimulate sustainable manufacturing in the US supply chain ? Will these Federal standards influence state and local government initiatives if it can be shown that they reduce costs over the long term ? Are we trading off one impact (carbon) for another (new materials and metal demands) ?