National

President Trump’s Defense Department cut all but 1 of 23 mentions of “climate change” from the final draft of a Congressionally mandated report on climate risks — increased flooding, drought, wildfire and extreme temperatures  — to U.S. military installations. 

Why it matters: This wordsmithing signals to the thousands of men and women in uniform that climate change is not an important issue for them. Refusing to acknowledge climate change in U.S. national security policy doesn’t make the threat any less real — it only impedes the formulation of concrete, necessary plans.

The big picture: Every secretary of defense since Robert Gates in 2006 has recognized climate change as a national security threat. Under questioning, even President Trump’s defense secretary, James Mattis, has made plain that "climate change is impacting stability in areas of the world where our troops are operating."

Despite longstanding Department of Defense doctrine, however, ever since President Trump moved into the White House, the phrase "climate change" has evaporated from key strategic documents, including the National Security Strategy, the National Defense Strategy and the Department of Homeland Security’s Strategic Plan for FEMA.

Omitting the words "climate change" does not help to ensure the operational readiness and  effectiveness of U.S. troops and military facilities in the face of rising seas and more heat. Instead, it increases the likelihood that costly mistakes occur — mistakes like failing to account for sea level rise when building expensive critical infrastructure, as the Department of Defense recently did with a billion dollar space radar system on the tiny Pacific island of Kwajalein, which may be uninhabitable in a matter of decades.

The bottom line: These omissions force national security decision-makers to rely on code words or, worse, to ignore the threats from climate change altogether. Neither approach helps keep the country safe. 

Alice Hill is a research fellow at the Hoover Institution and a former senior director for resilience at the National Security Council.

Ignoring climate change only compounds its national security risks

It's a threat that calls for action, not word games.

aircraft carriers in port at Norfolk Naval Base

Aircraft carriers in port at Naval Station Norfolk, Virgina, which is prone to floods that have worsened with sea level rise. Photo: MC2 Ernest R. Scott/U.S. Navy/Handout/Navy Media Content Service/Corbis via Getty Images

Politics

Department of Defense (DOD)

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Energy

President Trump’s Defense Department cut all but 1 of 23 mentions of “climate change” from the final draft of a Congressionally mandated report on climate risks — increased flooding, drought, wildfire and extreme temperatures — to U.S. military installations. Why it matters: This wordsmithing signals to the thousands of men and women in uniform that climate change is not an important issue for them. Refusing to acknowledge climate change in U.S. national security policy doesn’t make the threat any less real — it only impedes the formulation of concrete, necessary plans.

Ominous forecasts about the impact of climate change serve as the backdrop for the world — led by U.S. lawmakers and companies — to debate big action on the problem, which could upend energy systems and our way of life.

Energy & Environment

The Trump administration's formal notice of its intent to withdraw from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement drives another nail in the coffin of U.S. ambitions to fight climate change and pushes the world closer to a less stable future.

Why it matters: Because the U.S. ranks as the second-largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, its retreat from the global battle against climate change exacts a heavy toll. This decision weakens pressure on other countries to reduce emissions at a time of peak global temperatures and atmospheric carbon concentrations higher than at any point in human history.

Where it stands: The U.S. announcement has not caused much outcry abroad, expected as it was. Nor has it yet kept other countries from continuing to join and honor the Paris agreement.

Yes, but: It has branded the U.S. as a global outlier and risks weakening the resolve of other nations to cut their own emissions as part of the voluntary agreement.

Meanwhile, federal recalcitrance has inspired businesses and local governments to redouble their own climate efforts. Hundreds of cities, as well as some 17 states and territories, have vowed to honor the country’s Paris accord commitments, potentially meeting two-thirds of promised American reductions.

Background: In retreating from action on climate, Trump has disregarded stacks of scientific studies warning about the consequences of “business as usual” emissions rates.

A new analysis from the U.S. Army predicts that impacts in the next two decades could include blackouts, starvation, conflict, disease, thirst and even the collapse of the military as it struggles to maintain water supplies in arid conflict areas.

The withdrawal is at odds with last year’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report that forecasts dire risks if emissions cause warming to exceed 1.5°C above historical averages.

What to watch: The world is barreling toward a future that threatens enormous suffering, from deeper droughts, bigger wildfires, rising sea levels and greater extremes of heat and precipitation. With another year until the U.S. can leave the Paris Agreement, a future administration could still reverse the withdrawal before its effects are fully felt.

Alice Hill is senior fellow for climate change policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, former senior director for resilience policy on the National Security Council and co-author of "Building a Resilient Tomorrow."

U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment

The U.S. is the world's second-largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.

Illustration of President Trump walking away from the planet earth

World

Paris Agreement

The Trump administration&#x27;s formal notice of its <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="intent to withdraw" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/trump-paris-climate-agreement-formal-withdrawal-6e3140dd-5b96-474b-a0e8-9c8f8a5b4800.html" data-vars-content-id="41d11511-12cf-4977-80e6-0a12abaf89b4" data-vars-headline="U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/trump-paris-climate-agreement-formal-withdrawal-6e3140dd-5b96-474b-a0e8-9c8f8a5b4800.html" target="_self">intent to withdraw</a> from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement drives another nail in the coffin of U.S. ambitions to fight climate change and pushes the world closer to a less stable future.Why it matters: Because the U.S. ranks as the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="second-largest contributor" data-vars-click-url="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/07/14/china-us-countries-that-produce-the-most-co-2-emissions/39548763/" data-vars-content-id="41d11511-12cf-4977-80e6-0a12abaf89b4" data-vars-headline="U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/07/14/china-us-countries-that-produce-the-most-co-2-emissions/39548763/" target="_blank">second-largest contributor</a> to greenhouse gas emissions, its retreat from the global battle against climate change exacts a heavy toll. This decision weakens pressure on other countries to reduce emissions at a time of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="peak global temperatures" data-vars-click-url="https://www.climatecentral.org/gallery/graphics/the-10-hottest-global-years-on-record" data-vars-content-id="41d11511-12cf-4977-80e6-0a12abaf89b4" data-vars-headline="U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.climatecentral.org/gallery/graphics/the-10-hottest-global-years-on-record" target="_blank">peak global temperatures</a> and atmospheric carbon concentrations higher than at any point in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="human history" data-vars-click-url="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/carbon-dioxide-levels-reach-highest-point-human-history-180972181/" data-vars-content-id="41d11511-12cf-4977-80e6-0a12abaf89b4" data-vars-headline="U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/carbon-dioxide-levels-reach-highest-point-human-history-180972181/" target="_blank">human history</a>.

Alice Hill

Stories

U.S. exit from Paris accord chips away at global climate commitment

Ignoring climate change only compounds its national security risks