4/21/10

Yesterday, the Pew Project on National Security, Energy, and Climate Change, along with former Sen. John Warner (R-VA) released a report on the military's efforts to address the challenges of climate change and energy security.  The military has recognized climate change and energy security as serious national security challenges that need to addressed, and has been a leader in efforts to adapt to these challenges.  As the director of the project said, the military "is doing more than sounding an alarm; it has enacted energy goals and is inventing, testing and deploying new technologies and alternative fuels to meet those goals. The military is, in many respects, leading the way and helping to reenergize America's future."  In addition to the military's recognition of the challenges ahead, bipartisan support to address energy and climate issues in order to better protect America also exists.  Yet despite the advice and efforts of military and national security leaders outlined in the Pew report, extreme conservatives continue to play politics and ignore the serious consequences posed by climate change and energy insecurity.

New report: "Military is clearly working to address the twin threats of energy dependence and climate change."  The new report from the Pew Project and former Chairman of the Armed Services Committee and former Navy Secretary finds that "Climate change, national security and energy dependence are interrelated global challenges. U.S. dependence on foreign sources of energy constitutes a serious threat-militarily, diplomatically and economically. And climate change is expected to act as a ‘threat multiplier,' stoking instability in some of the most volatile regions of the world and, in turn, threatening America's security.  Defense and intelligence experts have found that climate change can worsen instability as water and food supplies dwindle, storm intensity increases, agricultural patterns are disrupted and human migration across borders increases because of conflict or resource shortages.  Such effects also could increase U.S. military missions as troops are called on for support domestically and internationally. At home, the armed forces could be needed to support civil authorities, as they did during Hurricanes Andrew and Katrina. Abroad, the military's capabilities could be required in a range of humanitarian and security missions, from responding to natural disasters to assisting nations stressed by hunger and drought."

Every branch of the military has made efforts to address this challenge:

The U.S. Navy is developing a "green" carrier strike group to run completely on alternative fuels by 2016.  On April 22, the U.S. Navy will demonstrate the 'Green Hornet', an F/A-18 Super Hornet powered by a 50/50 biofuel blend.

The U.S. Army is developing a 500-megawatt solar power generation plant in Fort Irwin, California that will help power the base and reduce the base's vulnerability to power supply disruptions. Named a 'Net-Zero Plus installation', the Army hopes to free the base entirely from reliance on the public electric grid within the next decade.

The U.S. Air Force has a goal of meeting 25 percent of base energy needs from renewable energy sources by 2025.

The U.S. Marine Corps has launched a campaign aimed at reducing energy intensity and water consumption, and increasing the use of electricity generated by renewable energy.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said of the military's efforts on this subject that "The stakes could not be higher... energy reform will make us better fighters. In the end, it is a matter of energy independence and it is a matter of national security. Our dependence on foreign sources of petroleum makes us vulnerable in too many ways. The stakes are clear and the stakes are high. Our response has to be equal to that challenge." [Pew Project on National Security, Energy and Climate, 4/20/10. Ray Mabus, 4/20/10]

Along with the military, there is bipartisan support for addressing the "twin threats of energy dependence and climate change."  The Pew report with Senator Warner says that "Our examination finds that the U.S. military is clearly working to address the twin threats of energy dependence and climate change.  DoD leaders can help reduce the risks that energy patterns pose for the nation and its troops. But more must be done to mirror the ingenuity and foresight of the military. A strong policy framework that puts a price on carbon, invests in energy innovation and helps deploy low-cost, low-carbon energy sources will strengthen the economic, environmental and national security of our nation."

The Pew report is echoed by bipartisan support for action:

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC): "To let this thing fall apart, which it obviously could, I think dooms the country to another decade of changes on the margin and fighting internally, and, by then, China is going to dominate the alternative energy market... If our country doesn't get an energy vision and start incentivizing alternative sources of energy, this whole international movement to clean up the planet is going to pass us by, and we're going to be following China instead of leading China." [Lindsey Graham, via Politico, 4/20/10]

Bipartisan group of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan: VoteVets conducted a poll of veterans from across the political spectrum that showed strong support for action on climate change and clean energy legislation.  The poll showed that "Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan show strong support for a comprehensive clean energy and climate bill that invests in clean, renewable energy sources in America and limits carbon pollution in the atmosphere: 73 percent favor this legislation (48 percent strongly favor), compared to 22 percent who oppose the legislation (16 percent strongly oppose)." The respondents of the poll were 45 percent self-identified Republicans, 25 percent Independents, and 20 percent Democrats.  [VoteVets, 4/6/10]

Carol Browner, Director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy: "We are very clear that we want comprehensive legislation... Every now and then you will hear talk about maybe an energy-only bill. We think that would be unfortunate." [Carol Browner, via the Hill, 4/06/10]

Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC) and Arthur Laffer, a an economic advisor to President Reagan: "Conservatives do not have to agree that humans are causing climate change to recognize a sensible energy solution. All we need to assume is that burning less fossil fuels would be a good thing. Based on the current scientific consensus and the potential environmental benefits, it's prudent to do what we can to reduce global carbon emissions. When you add the national security concerns, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels becomes a no-brainer." [Bob Inglis and Arthur Laffer via the NY Times, 12/27/08]

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT): The "problem of climate change is growing more severe every day." [Joe Lieberman, 12/16/09]

[Pew Project on National Security, Energy and Climate, 4/20/10]

Despite efforts by the military and bipartisan leaders to combat climate change, extreme conservatives choose political gain over national security.  Referring to those who seek to address the national security challenges of climate change and energy security as "alarmists" and proponents of an "energy rationing project," Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), the ranking Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, has led efforts by extreme conservatives to ignore the national security challenges of climate change and energy security.  A Politico interview with Sen. Inhofe how he developed his views on the climate demonstrates this: "In the 1990s, when global warming emerged as an international issue, he was inclined to believe there was evidence of it and that human activity was contributing to it.  But when he reviewed the costs to consumers for fixing the problem, he dug deeper into the science and soon aligned with skeptics who dispute the contention that Earth is warming.  In the ensuing years, however, the scientific data mounted and public opinion swung toward an acknowledgement of global warming. Some conservatives - including former President George W. Bush - shifted from denying the phenomenon and the fact that humans are contributing to it to calling for action to combat it."  Similar evolutions have seen by other extreme conservatives.  The Chicago Tribune explains, "It wasn't long ago that Marco Rubio and Tim Pawlenty, two of the brightest fresh faces in the Republican Party, supported legislation to limit the greenhouse gas emissions that are blamed for global warming. But in recent weeks both have suddenly begun to express doubts about whether burning coal, powering cars with gasoline and other human activities in fact have anything to do with a warming Earth.  The shifts by Rubio and Pawlenty - as well as other prominent Republicans - reflect the rising power of climate change skeptics in the GOP, where global warming is becoming a litmus test for conservatives." [Politico, 4/19/10. Chicago Tribune, 3/7/10.]

What We're Reading

European airports have reopened for business, almost a week after a cloud of ash from an Icelandic volcano paralyzed the air travel industry.

A day after an Iraqi court ordered a partial recount of ballots cast in last month's national elections, the man whose political alliance won the most votes, former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, called for a broader recount of ballots.

Kyrgyzstan's interim government has said it will demand the extradition of the country's ousted president from Belarus once the investigation into the bloody massacre of April 7 is completed.

Insurgents killed the vice mayor of the southern Afghan city of Kandahar as he prayed at a mosque, the latest brazen attack on a government official in a volatile region where NATO troops are preparing for an assault on Taliban forces.

Iran is increasing its paramilitary Qods force operatives in Venezuela while covertly continuing supplies of weapons and explosives to Taliban and other insurgents in Afghanistan and Iraq, according to the Pentagon's first report to Congress on Tehran's military.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates called for an overhaul of the nation's export control system that he said would loosen sales of sensitive technology to American allies without letting up on restrictions over nations like Iran.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri denied that Hezbollah had received long-range SCUD missiles from Syria and said the allegations were concocted by Israel to threaten his country.

A video appearing to show elections officials stuffing ballot boxes in Sudan has surfaced.

Four suspected Somali pirates carrying AK-47s and a rocket-propelled grenade seized a bulk carrier with 21 crew members on board, the fourth ship pirates have captured in less than a week.

Drug violence is increasing in Mexico's northeastern states, close to the Texas-Mexico border.

Commentary of the Day

David Ignatius asks: What options do the United States and its allies have, short of war, to raise the cost to Iran of pursuing a nuclear weapons program?

Sebastian Junger examines the complicated legacy of the recently-vacated outpost of Restrepo, in eastern Afghanistan's Korengal Valley.

Glenn Reynolds reviews "Cyber War" by Richard Clarke and Robert Knake, and says the digital world has become a "hacker's playground," high on communication but severely lacking in security.