CLIMATE & SECURITYClimate Change Is a National Security Risk
Climate change is affecting practically everything on Earth, from natural systems to human endeavors. National security is no exception. The U.S. Defense Department recognizes that climate change is a “threat multiplier” as it exacerbates existing environmental stresses and security risks.
Climate change is affecting practically everything on Earth, from natural systems to human endeavors. National security is no exception. The National Intelligence Council has found that “climate change will increasingly exacerbate risks to U.S. national security interests as the physical impacts increase and geopolitical tensions mount about how to respond to the challenge.”
The U.S. Defense Department recognizes that climate change is a “threat multiplier” as it exacerbates existing environmental stresses and security risks. In a 2021 Department of Defense report, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that almost everything the U.S. Defense Department (DOD) does to defend the American people is jeopardized by climate change—the department’s strategies, plans, capabilities, missions, and equipment—and the risks are growing, especially since the world is not on track to meet its Paris Agreement goals. The risks lie not only within U.S. borders; our partner countries impacted by climate change affect American national security interests as well, he said.
Jason Bordoff, director of Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, goes further. “DOD and the wider national security community need to broaden their definition of ‘climate risk,’” he said. “There’s been plenty of analysis conducted on the exposure and risk to military infrastructure from rising sea level, storms, etc., but there will also be less direct impacts of climate change, such as competition over critical minerals or political instability in resource-rich nations as fossil fuel use eventually dwindles.”
Here is a look at the national security challenges posed by climate change.
Direct Threats
Infrastructure
Sea-level rise and extreme weather are affecting both the military’s infrastructure and its supply chains. Installations and facilities near coasts are eroding and flooding.
In 2013, Fort Irwin in California experienced flash flooding that cost over $65 million in damages. In Virginia, the Norfolk Naval Station, the world’s largest naval base, experiences routine flooding during rainstorms and high tides. This impacts the Navy’s ability to conduct operations in the Atlantic Ocean, and hampers its work on ships and submarines in the shipyard. U.S. military bases on Guam and the Marshall Islands are also vulnerable to sea-level rise. Damage from 2018’s Hurricane Michael shut down Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida for months; rebuilding it was estimated to cost $3.6 billion. Rising temperatures and extreme precipitation at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri can prevent stealth nuclear bombers from taking off.
