Climate change-related risks to 50% of U.S. military infrastructure: Pentagon

The Center for Climate & Security says that given that rapid climate change is projected to exacerbate most of the above categories of risks throughout this century (its effect on wind is less certain), the reasonable expectation is that vulnerabilities to military sites will increase unless significant resources are devoted to adapting DoD assets to this changing operational environment, or the rate and scale of climate change is reduced. “What is potentially significant about this survey, however, is how widespread climate change-related risks to military assets already are,” the Center for Climate & Security says.

Further, the report highlights the simple fact that these risks are not confined to just extreme storm surges and flooding, though those risks are significant, and that it is not just coastal sites that are vulnerable (see maps of U.S. sites on pages 3-6 of the survey). According to the survey’s summary of conclusions, of the roughly 50 percent of sites reporting past damage to assets from the above effects: “The highest number of reported effects resulted from drought (782) followed closely by wind (763) and non-storm surge related flooding (706). About 10 percent of sites indicated being affected by extreme temperatures (351), while flooding due to storm surge (225) and wildfire (210) affected about 6 percent of the sites reporting.”

As it has done under both Republican and Democratic administrations, the Department of Defense approaches climate change with necessary practicality. Page 7 of the report, which addresses a question many still wonder about, makes this clear:

A changing climate, national security, and DoD – why do we care?
The nature of our mission. DoD looks at climate through the lens of its mission. From that perspective, changes in climate affect national security in several ways. Changes in climate can potentially shape the environment in which we operate and the missions we are required to do.

The safety and suitability of our infrastructure. Our warfighters require bases from which to deploy, on which to train, or to live when they are not deployed. If extreme weather makes our critical facilities unusable or necessitate costly or manpower-intensive work-arounds, that is an unacceptable impact.

So, does climate change affect the U.S. military’s ability to do its job and fulfill its mission? “This survey, coupled with a range of previous products from the DoD (which are consistent with the best available science), clearly say ‘“yes’,” the Center for Climate & Security Essentially stresses. The DOD surveyed their installations and found that many are highly vulnerable to a variety of different types of extreme or severe weather events. Scientists expect heat waves, flooding, drought, and wildfires to all increase over the coming decades, further increasing DOD exposure and vulnerability.

“Unless significant measures are taken to prevent that scenario,” the Center says. “While further examination is needed to more comprehensively understand the full effects of those risks (now and in the future), an increase in political will and resources for combating climate change, both in terms of slowing it down and adapting to the inevitable, is clearly necessary for enhancing the national security of the United States. Let’s not wait for another report to get started.”

— Read more in Department of Defense Climate — Related Risk to DoD Infrastructure Initial Vulnerability Assessment Survey (SLVAS) Report (January 2018)