Climate change could cause serious damage to 75 percent of major U.S. military bases
The White House may not be worried about climate change, but the Pentagon sure is.
About two-thirds of the U.S. military's priority installations are vulnerable to current or future effects of climate change, a report from the Department of Defense found.
The report warned about rising sea levels flooding coastal bases and the dangers of drought-fueled wildfires spreading to bases inland, Bloomberg reports. Coastal bases on the East Coast and in Hawaii are in the most jeopardy, but drought vulnerabilities are widespread across the U.S., per the report.
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The Pentagon's findings contradict President Trump's previous denial of climate change's devastating effects. Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis recognized the importance of evaluating climate change, saying during his confirmation hearings that "the Department of Defense must pay attention to potential adverse impacts generated by this phenomenon."
The report says the Pentagon now plans on incorporating climate resilience in all future decision-making processes regarding resources, rather than making climate a separate program.
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Marianne is The Week’s Social Media Editor. She is a native Tennessean and recent graduate of Ohio University, where she studied journalism and political science. Marianne has previously written for The Daily Beast, The Crime Report, and The Moroccan Times.
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