Where Does U.S. Military’s Massive Carbon Footprint Come From?

According to Scientists for Global Responsibility, the world’s militaries are to blame for approximately 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The US military stands out as the largest institutional consumer of petroleum and the largest emitter of greenhouse gases. The annual emissions of the Department of Defense alone surpass those of some individual countries. Between 2001 and 2017, the DOD emitted 1.2-billion metric tonnes of greenhouse gases, which is equivalent to the annual emissions of 257-million passenger cars. Staggering as these numbers are, the negative impact of the US military on climate change seems to be downplayed.

Washington has about 750 bases in at least 80 countries (including 26 African ones) worldwide. All of them require fossil fuels for their operations, contributing to waste and pollution. In Africa, the risks are even more pronounced, with deforestation for military operations (amongst other factors) pushing countries closer to severe climate change.

Sources:

1. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/papers/ClimateChangeandCostofWar

2. https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/us-military-and-oil

3.guardian.

4. https://theconversation.com/us-military-is-a-bigger-polluter-than-as-many-as-140-countries-shrinking-this-war-machine-is-a-must-119269

5. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/12/elephant-in-the-room-the-us-militarys-devastating-carbon-footprint

6. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/files/cow/imce/papers/Pentagon%20Fuel%20Use%2C%20Climate%20Change%20and%20the%20Costs%20of%20War%20Revised%20November%202019%20Crawford.pdf

7. https://theconversation.com/the-defense-department-is-worried-about-climate-change-and-also-a-huge-carbon-emitter-118017

8. https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2023/06/08/if-dod-cares-about-security-in-africa-it-must-reduce-co2-emissions/