Democratic lawmakers slam Pentagon for scrapping climate studies
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The Pentagon says it is scrapping 91 social science-related studies on topics ranging from global migration patterns and climate change.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON - Democratic lawmakers slammed US President Donald Trump’s administration for cancelling US military studies on the impact of climate change, saying the move jeopardises national security by ignoring climate-related risks at home and abroad.
Scientists say climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding and wildfires.
The lawmakers, in a previously unreported letter to US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, say that translates into damage to military bases, drawing US troops to more relief missions and ushering in greater maritime access to the Arctic.
The issue has emerged in the United States as one of many that is dividing Republican and Democratic politicians.
Mr Trump, a Republican, has targeted climate programmes as part of a broader effort
Mr Hegseth posted on X on Sunday: “The (Department of Defence) does not do climate change crap.”
The Pentagon says it is scrapping 91 social science-related studies on topics ranging from global migration patterns and climate change impact to social trends and would save US$30 million (S$40 million) in a year.
It listed cancelled studies including “Social and Institutional Determinants of Vulnerability and Resilience to Climate Hazards in the African Sahel” and “Food Fights: War Narratives and Identity Reproduction in Evolving Conflicts.”
“Your threats to cut climate programmes at the Department of Defence (DoD) will jeopardise our national security, putting thousands of American lives and billions of American taxpayer dollars at risk,” wrote the four Democratic senators, Ms Elizabeth Warren, Ms Mazie Hirono, Mr Richard Blumenthal and Ms Tammy Duckworth in their letter dated March 11.
The lawmakers cited billions of dollars in damage to US bases in recent years, including flooding at Offutt Air Force Base in 2019 and storm damage at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam after it was struck by Typhoon Mawar in 2023.
There are also the lost hours in training as US troops respond to weather-related emergencies.
“Just last year, more than 6,500 National Guard members, 250 members of the Army Corps of Engineers, and 100 Marines mobilised to recovery efforts after Hurricanes Helene and Milton devastated the Florida Gulf Coast, while many more responded to fight fires in Oregon, Tennessee, West Virginia, Massachusetts, Texas, and California,” they wrote.
During the previous administration, led by President Joe Biden, the Pentagon had said it would include the risk of climate change in military simulations and war games.
Mr Trump’s administration withdrew from the board of the UN’s climate damage fund dedicated to helping poor and vulnerable countries cope with climate change-fuelled disasters.
The withdrawal is one of many steps taken by Mr Trump’s administration to pull back from multilateral initiatives. REUTERS
