Sep 2, 2010
Climate Change Exacerbates Yemen’s Water Woes – Truman Fellow Marc Sorel
By Laura Britton| Written by Marc A. Sorel | |
 DEVELOPMENTS The U.S. government’s recent donation of $13.5 million to support the United Nations’ World Food Program operations in Yemen epitomizes U.S. and other western nations’ concerns with Yemen’s deteriorating natural resources. As its resources deteriorate, the Yemeni government is facing growing threats to its national security. The growing presence of Al-Qaeda and other extremists, the Houthi rebellion in the north of the country, and an increasingly hostile protest movement, all spurred by lack of access to basic goods, threaten to make large swaths of the country, if not the entire nation, ungovernable.
Although some of these issues are attributable to mismanagement by the Yemeni government or the government’s lack of military equipment, other factors, including climate change, play a significant role. Yemen’s rapidly diminishing water resources are one example of how climate change, exacerbated by poor resource management, is contributing to national and regional instability in Yemen and the Middle East. BACKGROUND The forecasts for Yemen’s water supply are uniformly dire. Negatively affected by drought and shifting weather patterns, annual water consumption per capita, at 200 cubic meters, is 80 percent below the water poverty line of 1000 cubic meters. The country’s capital, Sana’a, whose 7% annual population growth rate is the highest of any nation’s capital in the world, is expected to run out of economically viable water supplies by 2017, the same year the World Bank predicts Yemen will cease earning income from its oil, which accounts for three-quarters of the country’s annual income. The options for replacing the city’s expired water supply are as stark as the problem – pump desalinated water from the ocean up 2,000 meters to the capital; transfer water from a nearby basin separated from Sana’a by mountains; or move the capital elsewhere. Weather patterns often associated with the effects of climate change have accelerated Yemen’s water woes. An unusually long drought has left 19 of the country’s 21 aquifers permanently dry. The climate-based challenges Yemen faces do not end with access to freshwater. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ranked the Yemeni port city of Aden sixth among twenty-five cities vulnerable to rising sea levels. Rising sea levels can contaminate water supplies, damage infrastructure, and make portions of coastal cities uninhabitable because of regular flooding or submersion. Aware of its environmental vulnerabilities, the Yemeni government has acted to combat climate change. During the first Earth Summit in 1992, Yemen became party to the United Nations Committee on Climate Change, which was internationally implemented in 1994. Yemen’s accession to the Kyoto Protocol was approved in September 2004. Since then, the Yemeni government has consistently supported efforts to responsibly manage Yemen’s water supply. In 2008, the government unveiled a plan to gather and harvest 70 percent of rainwater by 2012 in Sana’a. According to the plan, other parts of the country would collect 40 percent of rainwater by 2020. Yet the Yemeni government’s initiatives have yet to bare substantive fruit. Fund-raising efforts by the international community to support Yemen’s strategy have yet to meet fundraising goals. Even money raised and dispensed has had little effect or affect on the Yemeni government’s efforts to contain the multiple violent movements throughout the country that threaten to plunge the country into chaos before its wells run dry. A collapsed Yemen would be problematic for the region, creating a sanctuary for extremist movements adjacent to the region’s leading oil producer, Saudi Arabia. ANALYSIS Substantive action on climate change is unlikely to occur before Yemen’s water crisis becomes significantly worse. The solution to the country’s water problems must begin with reform of water usage by its agricultural sector. This requires re-allocating water away from the thirsty plants of the qat leaf, a mild narcotic that consumes 40 percent of Yemen’s water and is chewed by approximately 70 percent of Yemeni men. Yemen’s leaders must find the rhetoric and cultivate the constituencies that will permit this culturally sensitive transition to occur with a minimum of conflict. But the scope of Yemen’s resource and security problems are such that the Yemeni government cannot act alone to improve its stewardship of water and other climate change-affected resources. Support from the international community is essential. Yemen should work most closely with the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, especially wealthy Saudi Arabia, which has a vital national interest. Even as it addresses its short-term problems, the Yemeni government must continue to pursue long-term solutions, both on climate change through diplomatic means, and on water usage through research and development. In this way, it will ensure a sustainable solution to the problems that threaten its ability to govern. Marc A. Sorel is Middle East Regional Editor at Foreign Policy Digest. |
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Sep 1, 2010
Arizona Veterans Set Record Straight on Energy, Troops & Security, Condemn Irresponsible anti-Giffords Ad
By Laura BrittonOPERATION FREE
Secure America with Clean Energy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 1, 2010
CONTACT
David Solimini, 757-876-0295
Arizona Veterans Set Record Straight on Energy, Troops & Security, Condemn Irresponsible anti-Giffords Ad
Ad ignores the casualties caused by need to transport fuel in combat zones & disrespects General Petraeus.
Veterans ask Conservatives for Congress to pull down ad & apologize
Arizona veterans today responded to an ad by special interest group Conservatives for Congress which attacks Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-8) for supporting the Department of Defense in their attempt to decrease energy use on the battlefield. Significant American casualties occur during the transport of fuel to troops in forward operating bases across Iraq and Afghanistan, and Giffords’ questions on the topic demonstrate that she understands the threats our troops face.
The complete, unedited, question and answer can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ww0ojjhtGc&feature=player_embedded
The ad disrespectfully manipulates the words of General David Petraeus, commander of forces in Afghanistan, as well, showing just how out of touch with American values “Conservatives for Congress” is. Today’s military leaders, and Congresswoman Giffords, understand the important connection between energy and security, a connection this reckless ad ignores.
Arizona veterans on the call particularly highlighted how the ad disrespects the dangerous work of hauling fuel in the streets of Baghdad and Kabul, and featured a serviceman who performed that duty, an assignment that that has cost the lives of many men and women in uniform. In light of the consensus view of the US military and intelligence community on the threat posed by America’s short-sighted climate and energy policy, the veterans asked Conservatives for Congress to remove this reckless ad from the air.
Speakers on the call included: Former commander of Arizona’s Davis-Montham Air Force Base Lt. Gen. Norman Seip, US Air Force (ret.); US Marine Corps Iraq War veteran and Arizona native Ruben Gallego; US Army Iraq War veteran and Arizona native Mark Cardenas; and Operation Free Campaign Director and US Marine Corps veteran Jonathan Murray.
“I and the rest of the veterans of Operation Free want to thank Congressman Giffords for doing more than just putting a yellow ribbon on her car,” said Ruben Gallego, Arizona native and US Marine Corps Iraq War veteran. “While many members of Congress talk a big game about supporting our troops, Congresswoman Giffords’ actions are not only saving the Department of Defense billions of dollars, but also directly protecting our troops in combat.”
“This ad manipulates the words of our senior military leadership and disrespects the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform,” said Jonathan Murray, US Marine Corps veteran and Operation Free campaign manager. “hauling oil across the mountains of Afghanistan and through the streets of Bagdad is deadly work. These people owe the men and women who do that work an apology. America’s dependence on oil puts money into the hands of terrorists around the world. And at the same time carbon pollution is destabilizing nations like Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, Nigeria, and Afghanistan, creating safe havens for terrorists. This isn’t a political issue, this is a question of American security.”
US military leaders have recognized the threat posed by climate change and begun to prepare for climate-caused challenges. The CIA, the Defense Department, and the National Intelligence Council have all noted that climate change will increase instability in critical parts of the world. Earlier this year, in an unprecedented statement, the Department of Defense highlighted broad geopolitical and security threats posed to the United States by climate change when it released the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR).
Operation Free is a coalition of veterans and national security organizations dedicated to securing America with clean energy. Operation Free sponsors the Veterans for American Power National Tour, a 29 state tour by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans making the connection between energy policy and national security. Learn more at www.OperationFree.net. Operation Free is an advocacy campaign of the Truman National Security Project.
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Sep 1, 2010
Arizona Vets Talk Energy & Afghanistan, respond to irresponsible anti-Giffords ad
By Laura BrittonOPERATION FREE
Secure America with Clean Energy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 1, 2010
CONTACT
David Solimini, 757-876-0295
TODAY: Veterans to Set Record Straight on Energy and Afghanistan, respond to irresponsible anti-Giffords ad
Ad ignores the casualties caused by need to transport fuel in combat zones
Veterans will ask Conservatives for Congress to pull down ad, apologize
In response to an ad by Conservatives for Congress which attacks Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-8) for her strong support of the Department of Defense’s efforts to reduce oil consumption on the battle field, veterans and security experts will highlight the group’s dangerous ignorance of the challenges of 21st century conflict. They will discuss the fact that the ad manipulates General Petraeus’ words, ignores military leadership, and disrespects the dangerous work of hauling fuel in the streets of Baghdad and Kabul, a service that has cost the lives of many men and women in uniform. In light of the consensus view of the US military and intelligence community on the threat posed by America’s short-sighted climate and energy policy, veterans will ask Conservatives for Congress to remove this reckless ad from the air.
WHO:
Ruben Gallego, US Marine Corps and Iraq War veteran and Arizona native
Mark Cardenas, US Army and Iraq War veteran and Arizona native
Lt. Gen. Norman Seip, US Air Force (ret.), former commander of Arizona’s Davis-Montham AFB
Jonathan Murray, US Marine Corps veteran and Operation Free Campaign Director
WHERE: 209-647-1075, Access Code 892222#
WHEN: TODAY @ 10:00 a.m. Pacific, 1:00 p.m. Eastern
Operation Free is a coalition of veterans and national security organizations dedicated to securing America with clean energy. Learn more at www.OperationFree.net.
The Truman National Security Project is a leadership institute which trains progressives to lead on national security issues. Learn more at www.TrumanProject.org.
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Although we will not see the comprehensive energy and climate change bill that all of us associated with Operation Free were hoping for from this session of Congress, rest assured our efforts were not for naught. The enthusiasm I witnessed this past week as we walked the halls of Congress expounding on our message and the attendance and participation at the White House sponsored event speaks volumes of the lasting commitment of the Operation Free team. Once the Operation Free leadership team reassesses our strategy and way ahead post Nov elections, I know we will be back in full force communicating our message of national security, prosperity and energy independence to all levels of government as well as to more of the very diverse audiences we met and discussed the perils of climate change and energy dependence with this past year. I would encourage each of you continue to fight the good fight and share of very important message with any and all audiences. And I’m sure the Operation Free leadership team would welcome your thoughts on the strategy we should pursue in the future.
All of us associated with Operation Free are on the right side of this issue. Our men and women who so proudly serve deserve a comprehensive energy bill as well as every citizen of our great country. This is not a left or right or center issue nor a Republican, Democratic or Independent cause..energy independence is a cause for all Americans and we in Operation Free have the means to keep the cause on track. It’s an honor to be on this team and I look forward to continuing our worthy work.
Norman R. Seip
Lt Gen (ret.) USAF
On Tuesday, July 27th, Operation Free veterans, including several retired Generals and Admirals, met with Senators on Capitol Hill and then attended the White House Forum on Energy Security at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. We met with Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln, both Arkansas Democrats, and discussed the weakened energy legislation being considered in the Senate. We heard from Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman, and Special Assistant to the President for Climate Change and Clean Energy Carol Browner, in addition to many Deputy- and Undersecretaries and retired flag officers from all of the military services. Operation Free veteran Robin Eckstein participated in a panel discussion at the forum as well.
As veterans, we are used to dealing with the military, an institution that will take quick and decisive action to change as necessary to deal with and respond to challenges. We are also becoming familiar with the slow and deliberate pace of change in the United States Senate. The events of the 27th exhibited this perfectly. Senators Pryor and Lincoln expressed to us that while they support eventually putting a price on carbon, they cannot agree on how it should be done. They also expressed their support for clean, renewable energy sources but refuse to ‘pick winners and losers’ as far as which sources should be developed. The overall message was that something needs to be done, but nothing will get done right now.
This contrasted greatly with the message we heard at White House Forum from the Pentagon and Department of Energy. Secretary Mabus and Deputy Secretary Poneman both expressed a joint, clear vision of a military committed to breaking dependence on oil, increasing energy efficiency, and developing and implementing new clean energy sources to fuel the fight. The military seems to be committed to getting done what the U.S. Congress cannot.
Our hope is that if Congress listens to the military on all other national security issues, it will eventually listen on this issue. We are disappointed that the Senate could not get the votes for a stronger comprehensive clean energy bill that fully addresses the issues of climate change and energy independence, but feel that we are at least facing in the right direction now. The U.S. intelligence establishment, the State Department, and the Pentagon acknowledge that this is an issue and the military is taking steps to address it. Let’s hope that Congress follows their example and listens to the military and veterans on this important national security issue. We need stronger measures and leadership in the Senate; Congress is not off the hook yet.
