After Trump is gone
NATO is waging war on the climate threat
A study found that if the US military were a country, it would occupy the 47th place in the list of the world's largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
Father
Trump has always called climate change a lie.
Reuters
German Leopard tank.
archival
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A 2019 study found that if the US military were a country, it would be the 47th largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world.
Although the British universities of Lancaster and Durham did not take into account during the study only emissions resulting from the use of fuel, the study indicated the enormous impact of the armed forces around the world on the planet's climate.
Facing a battle with global warming, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) decided for the first time to make this issue a major focus of planning and strategy.
At their summit, the leaders of the Western military alliance are expected to agree on a climate action plan to achieve carbon neutrality for their armed forces by 2050 and adapt to the threats posed by global warming.
NATO diplomats say efforts to focus on climate change have been hampered during Donald Trump's presidency.
He has consistently described climate change as a "lie" and withdrew his country from the international Paris Agreement to combat climate change.
Trump also showed distrust of NATO itself, and threatened in 2018 to withdraw the United States from this alliance formed in 1949 to contain the Soviet military threat.
Now, with US President Joe Biden prioritizing climate action, diplomats said the alliance could address concerns about the threat of climate change to transatlantic security and coalition personnel.
The causes of pollution
The armed forces of NATO member states are aware that climate change will have significant security implications that are expected to include increased migration, the flooding of NATO coastal bases and an increased Russian presence in the Arctic Circle as sea ice melts.
However, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels, member states need to reform the heart of the alliance as the alliance sets fuel standards across its sectors.
By committing to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, the Alliance's Action Plan will put it on track to meet the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global temperature rise by 1.5°C.
Achieving that goal will mean reducing military emissions, which are often excluded from countries' carbon emissions targets, a not easy achievement for the US Department of Defense, the world's largest single consumer of oil, according to 2019 research by Neta Crawford at Boston University.
Although experts say EU countries tend to underestimate the emissions of their national militaries, a February study commissioned by the European Parliament estimated that the carbon footprint of EU military spending in 2019 amounted to 24.8 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, equal to the emissions produced. About 14 million cars.
A German defense expert, who asked not to be named, said that a main battle tank like the German Leopard consumes 400 liters of diesel fuel in the field to cover a distance of only 100 kilometers.
The average fuel consumption in the United States for a regular civilian vehicle was 9.4 liters per 100 kilometers in 2018, according to a 2020 study by the International Energy Agency.
It is also possible that tank warfare will be more difficult in light of global warming.
A military source said German Osielot tanks during a NATO maneuver in Poland in 2019 rose above 40 degrees Celsius, and soldiers could only spend a few hours inside.
Some NATO members are working to reduce electricity consumption or integrate climate forecast models into military missions.
Germany has the first carbon-neutral barracks, with power produced almost entirely from units that use geothermal heat or solar panels.
The Dutch military can use solar panels instead of diesel generators during operations.
Crisis multiplier
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have described climate change as a "crisis multiplier".
The armies also expect more operations in areas subject to climatic fluctuations, as forces are called in to deal with natural disasters caused by the climate.
Managing such crises is a key task for the Alliance, thanks to its ability to quickly provide food supplies, logistical and medical support.
In 2018, eight of the ten countries that hosted the largest number of personnel participating in multilateral peacekeeping operations were in regions highly vulnerable to the vagaries of climate change, according to a study prepared by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
European defense sources told Reuters that NATO members are also testing more equipment to work in extreme cold conditions.
The durability of the gear on the battlefield is a priority.
Diplomats said former United Nations envoy Stoltenberg, who specializes in climate change, began pushing for a NATO-wide climate deal, after Biden replaced Trump.
Alliance members must decide how much climate-related investments to fund collectively in the Alliance.
Because military hardware takes decades to develop and has longer lives than civilian cars, experts say one of NATO's biggest contributions in the medium term will be the increased use of synthetic fuels rather than fossil fuels.
The German military may start adding synthetic fuels to conventional fuels within a few years.
However, electric tanks are not an option.
"It will be difficult to establish charging stations on the battlefield in time before the start of the fighting," said a German defense source, who asked not to be named.
heavy losses
According to a new study issued by the European Environment Agency every four years on the repercussions of extreme weather phenomena on the environmental, social and economic conditions in the European Union, there are conclusions that are really worrying because of the damages resulting from these repercussions, and the lack of strategies and plans to reduce them and adapt to climate changes.
Among the extreme phenomena that the authors of the study expect to intensify in the coming years, are the increasing periods of drought in southern Europe and the rise in temperatures to unprecedented levels.
This would cause more premature deaths, knowing that these deaths - according to the new study - have affected tens of thousands since the year 2000. The outcome is set to rise if the European Mediterranean countries in particular do not undertake a comprehensive review of ventilation and air conditioning systems, especially in homes the elderly and in hospitals.
Among these phenomena is also the high rate of tornadoes and hurricanes, especially in the countries of Europe bordering the Atlantic Ocean.
This will cause significant damage to the coastal areas, their ports, airports and roads, which will contribute to raising the cost of the resulting economic losses.
According to the study, these losses amounted to 400 billion euros during the period from 1990 to 2019.
• A main battle tank, such as the German Leopard, consumes 400 liters of diesel fuel in the field to cover a distance of only 100 kilometers.
• The armed forces of NATO member states realize that climate change will have significant security implications that are expected to include increased migration.
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