US Military Causes Extraordinary Jump In Air Pollution
America’s military machine is among the largest polluters on the planet. The Pentagon’s carbon footprint annually is as large as that of Finland or Serbia. As wars around the world ramp up, these numbers will rise, particularly when combined with the military costs of the Ukraine war and Israel’s battles with the Panistins.
The Guardian reports, “The Pentagon – the US armed forces and Department of Defense (DoD) agencies – is the world’s largest institutional greenhouse gas emitter, accounting for at least 1% of total US emissions annually, according to an analysis by Neta Crawford, co-founder of the Costs of War project at Brown University.”
Science Direct recently ran a paper titled “Tracking unaccounted greenhouse gas emissions due to the war in Ukraine since 2022.” The authors made the point that this includes the use of oil, the burning of buildings and homes, the destruction of forests, and the explosion of weapons.
Ukraine Pollution
“The war of 2022/2023 in Ukraine radically affected the amount and structure of GHG emissions not only in Ukraine but also far beyond its borders.” This includes refugees, weapons production, and fossil fuel production in Russia.
As for Israel and Gaza. The Queen Mary University of London said in a report it looked at infrastructure, reconstruction, the use of coal, and “The emissions from the first 120 days of the Israel-Gaza conflict exceeded the annual emissions of 26 individual countries. This period saw intense military activity, including bombing raids, reconnaissance flights, and rocket attacks.”
The information is telling. Even if the countries mentioned in these studies cut back greenhouse gas emissions in other areas, military activity could offset that.
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