Climate Change Will Threaten Our Military

The Center for Naval Analysis conducted an innovative study in 2007 by bringing together eleven retired generals to assess the threat of climate change on American interests. The Generals were not environmentalists; some were quite skeptical of climate change. Surprised by the scope of the problem, these generals concluded that climate change is a “threat multiplier” that required the full attention of the Department of Defense and the US government to act before it is too late.

CNA Link: http://securityandclimate.cna.org/

‘Threat Multiplying’ effects of Climate Change:

• Political instability in volatile regions of the world
• Potential for internal conflicts and extremism
• The US will be called upon for stability and reconstruction efforts

“We will pay to reduce greenhouse gas emissions today…or we will pay the price later in military terms. And that will involve human lives.” – General Anthony Zini

Every day, the men and women of our military serve us, from the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan, to disaster relief in New Orleans, to humanitarian interventions around the world. We can help them shoulder the burden by acting on climate change now. If we work to reduce our use of oil and mitigate the effects global warming, our military will be able to continue to work effectively. But, if we continue to wait, rising ocean levels will inundate naval bases and island bases; temperatures will become more extreme, making it more difficult to execute operations around the world; ice caps will melt, forcing our navy to expand further around the world.

To ensure the strength of our military, we need to address the affects of climate change.

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