Militarism and the climate crisis are linked; the US military is the world's largest oil consumer.
- US military emissions exceed those of 140 nations; over 64% of government discretionary spending is allocated to the Pentagon.
- The Pentagon is the largest institutional consumer of fossil fuels globally.
- Pentagon's fuel use alone would rank it as 47th largest greenhouse gas emitter if it were a country.
- US military emissions primarily stem from fueling weapons and equipment.
If you needed another reason to oppose war aside from the threat of nuclear destruction, massive civilian casualties, violence against women and the concentration of fascist imperialist powers into corporatized hands, this is it. The US Pentagon already is the planet’s largest single institutional emitter of fossil fuels, and US-backed conflicts around the world since WWII can always be tied back to economic gain dominance, especially via the private control of fuel and natural resources. A war with China, which the US has gradually encircled with hundreds of military bases and weaponry, is being provoked for economic reasons as the government and media manufacture the consent of the American public. This will only result in the increase of Pentagon funding (already at $858 billion), siphoning off billions of dollars of taxpayer money to infrastructure and weaponry which is destroying our climate. Many people don’t realize that every solution to climate change already exists – the government simply will not fund it when its priority is making war. Demilitarization is one of the most important things we can do for the climate, and for living beings inside and outside conflict zones.
Source: https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/costs/social/environment
Ukraine War
- As of January 2024, the Russia-Ukraine War has caused over $56.4 billion in environmental damage including widespread chemical contamination of air, water, and soil.
- 30% of Ukraine is contaminated with landmines and unexploded ordnance.
- Landscape destruction, shelling, wildfires, deforestation, and pollution impact 30% of protected areas.
- The seizure of Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and destruction of Nova Kakhovka Dam pose long-term environmental risks.
- Majority of environmental impacts pose long-term threats to human health.
Source: The environmental health impacts of Russia's war on Ukraine.