In Brief
The Situation
The U.S. Navy is already coping with the consequences of climate change—higher sea levels, new precipitation patterns, and more frequent and severe extreme weather events—that will imperil and destabilize many regions domestically and abroad.
The Challenge
As the world’s climate changes, the navy must address both an increased demand for its military and humanitarian services and an impaired capacity to deliver those services as risk of damage to ports and bases increases.
The Approach
The navy uses a strategic mix of “no regrets” and “bets” investments to address the threats posed by climate change.
The United States Navy operates on the front lines of climate change. It manages tens of billions of dollars of assets on every continent and on every ocean. Those assets—ships, submarines, aircraft, naval bases, and the technology that links everything together—take many years to design and build and then have decades of useful life. This means that the navy needs to understand now what sorts of missions it may be required to perform in 10, 20, or 30 years and what assets and infrastructure it will need to carry out those missions. Put another way, it needs to plan for the world that will exist at that time.
