Pentagon is raising concern over a climate change threat in the Arctic region as US military bases fail to prepare for effects of warming weather.

US military bases in the Arctic and sub-Arctic are already seeing damage from changing weather patterns, including cracked runways and increased flooding, and are not prepared to adapt to the long-term effects of climate change, the Pentagon’s inspector general reported last Friday.

The threat has been overlooked despite a 2019 Pentagon report to Congress saying that climate change is a national security issue with potential impacts on US military missions and bases.

On visits to six bases in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions, the inspector general found that commanders weren’t aware of requirements for resilience planning, which was ordered in a 2016 Pentagon directive. The base leaders did not comply with mandates to identify current and projected environmental risks, vulnerabilities and mitigation measures.

Climate change is more acute in the Arctic than in most other parts of the world. The effect has caused issues such as runways, hangars, roads and rock barriers being damaged by melting ice, the inspector general said.

The US, Russia and other countries have looked to increase their military presence in the Arctic, partly because of the region’s vast petroleum and mineral reserves. Warming temperatures also opened new shipping lanes in the Arctic, increasing access to natural resources.
-RT