“We must use all of the tools at our disposal, from dialogue and mediation to preventive diplomacy, to keep the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources from fueling and financing armed conflict and destabilizing the fragile foundations of peace.”

—UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

U. S. MILITARY: A DANGEROUS SOURCE OF GLOBAL WARMING AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Intense damage to the environment has occurred as a result of wars and the research, testing, and production of the weapons of war. And U.S. wars are leaving lasting scars, not only on survivors, but on the environment: water and soil pollution and destruction and degradation of forests, wetlands, and wildlife.

The U. S. military is one of the world’s largest institutional consumers of petroleum; the Department of Defense (DoD) uses 4.6 billion U.S. gallons of fuel annually, an average of 126 million gallons of fuel per day.

The U. S. military also uses huge amounts of electricity, which accounts for even more greenhouse gas emissions. In 2012, the DoD consumed about a billion gigawatt hours of energy, emitting 70 million metric tons of CO2.

Yet, the Pentagon has a blanket exemption in all international climate agreements since the 1998 Kyoto Accords. More than 1,000 U.S. bases in over 130 countries enjoy this U.S. military exemption. 6,000 facilities in the U.S., its aircraft carriers and its jet aircraft are exempt; weapons testing and all multilateral operations (e.g. the U.S.-commanded NATO military alliance and Africom) are also exempt.

At the same time, the U. S. military’s excessive need for oil and energy results in a dangerous feedback loop between war and global warming.

TO AVERT GLOBAL WARMING, WE MUST CREATE A WORLD INVESTED IN PEACE, NOT WAR!

End War Committee of Women Against Military Madness and Twin Cities Peace Campaign.

    FFI: 612-827-5364 or 612-275-2720    www.womenagainstmilitarymadness.org

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