The Pentagon has been tasked to manage the national security risks associated with climate change, according to a Defense Department directive.
The memo, dated Jan. 14, orders troops to “adapt current and future operations” to maintain the military’s effectiveness amid the impacts of climate change. It became effective last week and will cover nearly all Defense Department operations around the world, “unless superseded by international agreement.”
Mission planning must take the effects of climate change “into consideration when developing plans and implementing procedures.”
The Pentagon said in a report last year that climate change is an “urgent and growing threat” to national security, since it will exacerbate problems like poverty, social tensions and weak political institutions, and increase instability. More frequent natural disasters could also increase the need for U.S. troops to participate in humanitarian or disaster relief operations, leaving fewer forces to respond to other needs.
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus spoke last week about progress the Navy and Marine Corps have already made to reduce energy usage.
The service has already met the goal he set to have half of all shore-based energy come from alternative sources, and the Navy is prepared to meet the same requirement at sea by 2020. The “Great Green Fleet” will also launch this month.
The Navy’s effort to be more eco-friendly has ranged from using biofuels to installing energy saving LEDs on ships, Mabus said.
In addition to being less harmful to the environment and saving money, cutting the service’s reliance on traditional fuel sources has saved lives since fewer convoys are needed to carry fuel.
