All national security doctrine, policies, and plans must now consider potential climate change-related impacts, a presidential memorandum released by the White House on Wednesday dictates. “Climate change and its associated impacts affect economic prosperity, public health and safety, and international stability. Extended drought, more frequent and severe weather events, heat waves, warming and acidifying ocean waters, catastrophic wildfires, and rising sea levels all have compounding effects on people’s health and well-being,” the memorandum states.
A working group will be tasked with developing “recommendations for requirements for climate and social science data and intelligence analyses, as appropriate, that support national security interests,” the memo says. It will also catalog scientific data and intelligence analyses to be considered when reviewing the climate impacts of national security policy, “develop recommendations for the Secretary of State to help ensure that the work of U.S. embassies, including their planning processes, are better informed by relevant climate change-related analyses,” and complete other tasks.
The working group must, within 90 days, develop an action plan for the completion of its directed tasks, according to the memorandum.
Secretary of State John Kerry applauded the memorandum in a written statement. “I have been focused on climate change for decades – not just because I’m a proud environmentalist, but because scientists have been crystal clear that climate change is likely to have significant security implications over the world, including in the United States,” he said.
