🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
The U.S. and other nations have turned their focus toward the Arctic in recent years as melting sea ice has opened up new shipping lanes and energy reserves. However, the Pentagon warned Friday that climate change is already taking a toll on military bases in the region.
The Arctic's vast hydrocarbon and mineral reserves have made the region a significant focal point for military activity along its neighboring countries. The U.S., Russia, and other nearby nations have sought to increase their presence in the area, and the latest war in Ukraine could intensify competition for the region's natural resources.
However, a new report from the inspector general of the Department of Defense (DOD) found that the U.S. military has so far failed to prepare its bases in the Arctic and sub-Arctic to adapt to the threats of long-term climate change.
Inspectors visiting the six northernmost U.S. military bases last year found that none had implemented assessments or plans to prepare for the long-term effects of a warming planet. Under a 2016 DOD directive titled "Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience," major military installations are required to integrate necessary climate change considerations and address any environmental risks in their policies.
The report found that "most installation leaders at the six installations we visited in the Arctic and sub-Arctic region were unfamiliar with military installation resilience planning requirements, processes, and tools." The report found that this is due in part to a lack of training and guidance from the federal government.
The bases that were inspected include Thule Air Base, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Clear Space Force Station, Eielson Air Force Base, Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely.
Across some of them, the inspectors noted that climate change has already caused significant damage, including cracked and sunken runways caused by melting ice, as well as damaged hangers and roads, and collapsed rock barriers.
Wildfires have also played a role in affecting military bases, causing a significant loss of training time for Pacific Air Force fighter squadrons during a 2019 period when blazes were particularly bad, the report noted.
"The extent of climate change is more significant in the Arctic than in most other parts of the world," the report states. "The DOD is investing in resilient installation infrastructure and assets in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions to support increased Arctic operations and enhanced Arctic awareness."
The report also noted the importance in increasing the safety of military bases in the Arctic, as the U.S. sees the region as a "potential vector for an attack on the U.S. homeland, a region where Russia and China are operating more freely, and a strategic corridor for DOD forces between the Indo-Pacific and Europe."
Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine has also played a role in the geopolitics surrounding the Arctic.
Last month, seven out of eight members of the Arctic Council—a diplomatic channel chaired by Russia and comprised of Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the U.S.—said they would temporarily suspend their participation in the council to protest the war.
"Russia's war against Ukraine is a watershed moment," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in comments late last month. "It is a new normal for European security and also for Arctic security."
Newsweek contacted the Department of Defense for comment.
