February 13, 2020

Duckworth Chairs Climate Crisis Committee Hearing on the National Security Risks of Climate Change

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) led a hearing of the Senate Democrats’ Special Committee on the Climate Crisis—which is chaired by Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) and is affiliated with the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee—on understanding and addressing the national security risks of climate change. Duckworth discussed the unique ways climate change threatens our country’s national security with Rear Admiral Ann C. Phillips (United States Navy, Ret.), The Honorable John Conger (Director of Center for Climate and Security) and Andrew Holland (Chief Operating Officer of the American Security Project). The experts also described the costs the Department of Defense (DoD) is facing and proposed policies that can help solve these problems. Photos of the hearing are available here and video is available here.

“The Department of Defense has long acknowledged that climate change poses a risk to our military readiness. Our military installations and training ranges face more extreme and frequent weather events including rising sea levels, droughts, wildfires and storms,” said Duckworth. “With the right investments and rigorous planning, I believe we can dramatically reduce the risks climate change presents to our national security and I’ll keep working to make sure we do just that.”

In March 2019, Duckworth outlined her vison for how we can keep our military the strongest in the world – arguing that if we want to remain atop the global order, we need to recognize that investing in green energy bolsters our national security and better serves our military.

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