How the Marine Corps Struck Gold in a Trash Heap As Part of the Pentagon’s Fight Against Climate Change
The Defense Department treats the warming climate as a catastrophic threat to national security: “A shrinking polar ice cap doesn’t just mean thinking about polar bears.”
By Sonner Kehrt
June 30, 2021
A Member of the 325th Civil Engineer Squadron begins the clean up process around their squadron on Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, Oct. 18, 2018, following Hurricane Michael. Credit: U.S. Air Force/ Senior Airman Keifer Bowes
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347 Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island was recognized for their efforts in leading the way in the Department of the Navy on environmental sustainability during a visit by the Secretary of the Navy April 1, 2021.
During his first visit to the base, Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas W. Harker presented the depot with the 2021 Secretary of the Navy Environmental Award, which recognized the depot for excellence in integrating environmental and operational sustainability efforts and mitigating impacts from storm surge and sea level rise through 2065.
In a memo announcing the depot as this year’s winner, Harker said the depot’s efforts “demonstrated that early and deliberate planning could yield a benefit cost ratio of 5.21, providing $675 million of net infrastructure, training and human health benefits, thus maximizing the operational budget and securing the depot’s mission.”