Low-Carbon Warfare

Issue #10: Spring 2024
Erik Kennedy

Low-Carbon Warfare

These days, threats don’t just come from other states.¹

With nature itself acting as an adversarial agent threatening international and domestic tranquility, new national security concepts and capabilities will be demanded.²

The existential threat has grown faster than I had imagined.³

Climate change is already disrupting the military.⁴

Embracing low-carbon warfare may be the only way to respond.⁵

In future years, it is highly likely that military technologies will be developed that help to reduce the carbon ‘bootprint’ of armies.⁶

‘Green’ militaries will swap out a fossil fuel–powered fighter jet with a death plane that flies on vegetable juice or dead animal fat, and pat themselves on the back for being carbon neutral.⁷

Can that which kills, maims, and destroys also be ecofriendly? The answer is ‘yes’.⁸

This might not sit well with those environmentalists who are instinctively repulsed by the ‘military-industrial complex’, but history teaches us that many technological advances have been born under the shadow of war.⁹

Let’s dive into some of the most exciting developments.¹⁰

A solar-powered Army drone has been flying for 40 days straight.¹¹

We are entering a new era of submarine construction.¹² The emerging Li-ion battery technology can be a ‘game changer in the underwater domain’.¹³ The battery tech in your smartphone finally goes to sea.¹⁴

Innovative transportation technologies are being considered as a way to reduce reliance on single-occupancy vehicles on military bases.¹⁵

LEDs have already been installed on more than 170 Navy ships.¹⁶ Recessed LED fixtures, reading and berth lights with integrated on/off touch dimmable control, table lights for living quarters, cabins, mess rooms.¹⁷

The Pentagon wants spent ammunition and casings to contain bioengineered seeds that would, after several months, grow environmentally friendly plants that would remove soil contaminants.¹⁸

Supporting firefighters and other people dealing with natural disasters is satisfying work for a lot of troops.¹⁹

Vegan soldiers are filing complaints against the armed forces due to lack of plant-based food options and cruelty-free uniforms.²⁰

The new and improved Tomahawk missile now runs on corn.²¹

An algae-powered Navy ship? Maybe.²²

Laser-charged infantry.²³

I love green tanks.²⁴

And more, much more is still to come.²⁵

Some scholars say the only green military is a smaller one.²⁶ We say that ‘quality and service aren’t just words’. Request a quote on military hardware.²⁷

Popular discourse is largely primitive and backwards when it comes to the politics of climate change.²⁸

When I first heard of ‘environmentally friendly weapons’, it struck me as a mind-boggling paradox to place environmental care next to the means of war.²⁹

And yet, progress is being made.³⁰

The green turn in military policy communicates a simple message: that such a thing as environmentally sustainable warfare exists.³¹

The cliché of the environment as a silent victim of conflict didn’t feel like something that we should just take for granted.³²

Human bodies being naturally biodegradable is not an argument for more war.³³

Carbon neutral isn’t morally neutral.³⁴

We understand.³⁵

It’s a good start, but we are committed to doing much more.³⁶

We are committed to a pro-active policy of corporate social responsibility.³⁷

We are committed to minimising the impact of our worldwide operations.³⁸

We are committed to delivering value to all stakeholders by driving excellence in environmental sustainability.³⁹

Are you a member of a community disproportionately impacted by militarism and climate change? Contact us and we’ll work to help amplify your voice.⁴⁰

The climate apocalypse will make the military-industrial complex busier, and more profitable, than ever.⁴¹

In essence, solving the problem of sustainability and war requires a focus upon ethics—both individual and social.⁴²

We believe we’re better together.⁴³

We believe doing what’s right and holding ourselves and others accountable is the only way to do business.⁴⁴

1
Erin Sikorsky, ‘The World’s Militaries Aren’t Ready for Climate Change’, Foreign Policy, 22 September 2022, https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/09/22/militaries-climate-change-security-threats-strategy-floods-fires/. The quotes in this piece (and it’s all quotes) are drawn from various genres of writing on war and the environment: conflict scholarship, news analysis, thinktank reckons, military press releases, industry blogs, activist publications, arms manufacturers’ corporate sustainability reports, and more.
2
Ronald D. Perkel, ‘Climate Changing Minds: Reintroducing Climate Change into National Security’ (master’s thesis, National Defense University, 2021), 50, https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/trecms/pdf/AD1154003.pdf.
3
Peter Handel, ‘We Must Reckon with the Most Dangerous System of Extinction Humans Ever Created’, Truthout, 30 December 2023, https://truthout.org/articles/we-must-reckon-with-the-most-dangerous-system-of-extinction-humans-ever-created/.
4
Patrick Tucker, ‘Climate Change Is Already Disrupting the Military. It Will Get Worse, Officials Say’, Defense One, 10 August 2021, https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2021/08/climate-change-already-disrupting-military-it-will-get-worse-officials-say/184416/.
5
Duncan Depledge, ‘Low-Carbon Warfare: Climate Change, Net Zero and Military Operations’, International Affairs 99, no. 2 (March 2023): 675, https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiad001.
6
Leo Hickman, ‘Laser-Powered Drones and Hybrid Tanks Could Cut Military’s Carbon “Bootprint”’, The Guardian, 21 April 2011, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2011/apr/21/military-carbon-saving-laser-hybrid.
7
Hannah Sharland, ‘Militaries and Arms Companies Can Reduce Emissions, but You Can’t Greenwash an Industry of Mass Murder and Destruction’, The Canary, 21 July 2023, https://www.thecanary.co/editorial/2023/07/20/militaries-and-arms-companies-can-reduce-emissions-but-you-cant-greenwash-an-industry-of-mass-murder-and-destruction/.
8
Leora Broydo, ‘Green Killing Machines’, Mother Jones, March/April 1998, https://www.motherjones.com/politics/1998/03/green-killing-machines/.
9
Hickman, ‘Laser-Powered Drones’.
10
‘‘Advancements in Energy Storage for Portable Military Equipment’, Energy5, 18 December 2023, https://energy5.com/advancements-in-energy-storage-for-portable-military-equipment (accessed on 26 January 2024; site inactive on 16 April 2024).
11
Rob Verger, ‘A Solar-Powered Army Drone Has Been Flying for 40 Days Straight’, Popular Science, 25 July 2022, https://www.popsci.com/technology/army-zephyr-drone-sets-records/.
12
‘The Submarine Revolution: Lithium-Ion Battery System for a Better Performance’, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, 15 October 2019, https://www.thyssenkrupp-marinesystems.com/en/teaser/the-submarine-revolution–lithium-ion-battery-system-for-a-better-performance.
13
Lee Willett, ‘Li-Ion Batteries Are Underwater “Game Changer”, Says U212 NFS Progamme Manager’, Naval News, 1 June 2023, https://www.navalnews.com/event-news/cne-2023/2023/06/li-ion-batteries-are-underwater-game-changer-says-u212-nfs-progamme-manager/.
14
Kyle Mizokami, ‘Introducing Japan’s Lithium Ion Battery-Powered Submarine’, Popular Mechanics, 14 November 2019, https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/navy-ships/a29798485/japan-lithium-ion-submarine/.
15
‘Applying Innovative Transportation Technologies on Military Installations’, National Defense Transportation Association, 1 April 2020, https://www.ndtahq.com/applying-innovative-transportation-technologies-on-military-installations/.
16
‘SECNAV Directs Navy to Expand Use of LEDs’, United States Navy, 13 April 2015, https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press-Releases/display-pressreleases/Article/2262340/secnav-directs-navy-to-expand-use-of-leds/.
17
Navy Ships LED Light Fixtures: Innovative and Future Proof, AtiLed, Fabas Luce SpA, 2019, 2, https://naval.atiled.it/catalogo/FABAS-ATILED-naval-led-light-fixtures-April-2019.pdf.
18
Kyle Mizokami, ‘The Military Wants Biodegradable Ammo That Turns into Plants’, Popular Mechanics, 11 January 2017, https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/research/a24690/us-military-biodegradable-ammo/.
19
Tucker, ‘Climate Change Is Already Disrupting the Military’.
20
Liam Gilliver, ‘Vegan Soldiers File Complaints Against Armed Forces Over Lack of Plant-Based Options’, Plant Based News, 13 May 2021, https://plantbasednews.org/culture/ethics/vegan-soldier-armed-forces-plant-based-options/.
21
‘The New and Improved Tomahawk Missile Now Runs on Corn’, Advanced Biofuels USA, 30 May 2020, https://advancedbiofuelsusa.info/the-new-and-improved-tomahawk-missile-now-runs-on-corn/.
22
‘Searching for Fuel Alternatives’, Currents: The Navy’s Environmental Magazine, Fall 2009, 52, https://p2infohouse.org/ref/49/48817.pdf.
23
‘How to Cut the British Army’s Carbon “Bootprint”’, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 21 April 2011, https://www.imeche.org/news/news-article/11-04-21/How_to_cut_the_British_Army_s_carbon_bootprint.aspx.
24
Celestine Schorlemer, ‘Beyond the “Green Tanks”: The Hidden Nexus of War and Climate Policy at COP28’, United Against Inhumanity, 8 December 2023, https://www.against-inhumanity.org/2023/12/08/beyond-the-green-tanks/.
25
David S. Alberts, Information Age Transformation: Getting to a 21st Century Military, Information Age Transformation Series, Command and Control Research Program, Department of Defense, 1996, 32, https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA457904.pdf.
26
Alejandro de la Garza, ‘To Take Climate Change Seriously, the U.S. Military Needs to Shrink’, Time, 17 February 2022, https://time.com/6148778/us-military-climate-change/.
27
‘Military Hardware’, B&B Electro-Mechanical Components, Inc., n.d., https://www.bbeminc.com/military-hardware.
28
Michael Busch, ‘Interview with Christian Parenti’, Foreign Policy in Focus, 29 September 2011, https://fpif.org/interview_with_christian_parenti/.
29
Nico Edwards, ‘Selling War Amid Climate Change’, Inkstick, 19 May 2023, https://inkstickmedia.com/selling-war-amid-climate-change/.
30
Airbus Summit 2022: The Flight Path Towards Greater Sustainability, Airbus, 2022, 12, https://www.airbus.com/sites/g/files/jlcbta136/files/2023-03/Airbus%20Summit%202022%20-%20Proceedings.pdf.
31
Edwards, ‘Selling War Amid Climate Change’.
32
Doug Weir, ‘How New Technologies Can Create Change Through Story Telling’, Conflict and Environment Observatory, 20 September 2023, https://ceobs.org/commentary-who-cares-about-the-environment-in-war/.
33
Ilan Kelman, ‘Eco-Weaponry’, Millennium Alliance for Humanity and the Biosphere, 8 August 2012, https://mahb.stanford.edu/recentnews/eco-weaponry/.
34
Sharland, ‘Militaries and Arms Companies’.
35
Corporate Social Responsibility Report, 2007, Northrup Grumman, 2007, 5, https://cdn.prd.ngc.agencyq.site/-/media/wp-content/uploads/2007-noc-csr-report.pdf.
36
Boeing 2008 Environmental Report, Boeing, 2008, 28, https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/principles/environment/pdf/2008_environment_report.pdf.
37
‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, Dassault Aviation, n.d., https://www.dassault-aviation.com/en/group/about-us/corporate-social-responsibility/.
38
‘Committed to Minimising Environmental Impact’, BAE Systems, 5 June 2017, https://www.baesystems.com/en/blog/commitment-to-minimising-environmental-impact.
39
‘L3Harris Technologies Publishes Inaugural Sustainability Report’, L3Harris Technologies, 15 March 2021, https://www.l3harris.com/newsroom/press-release/2021/03/l3harris-technologies-publishes-inaugural-sustainability-report.
40
Lorah Steichen and Lindsay Koshgarian, No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa, National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies, 2020, 37, https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep28827.
41
Jasper Craven, ‘Greenwashing the Military-Industrial Complex’, The Baffler, 1 October 2021, https://thebaffler.com/latest/greenwashing-the-military-industrial-complex-craven.
42
Peter Denton, ‘Sustainability, Ethics and War’, Canadian Military Journal 17, no. 3 (Summer 2017): 62, http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca/Vol17/no3/PDF/CMJ173Ep61.pdf.
43
‘Clean Energy’, Amentum, n.d., https://www.amentum.com/what-we-do/clean-energy/.
44
The Future Can’t Wait: 2020 Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Impact Report, Booz Allen Hamilton, 2020, 15, https://www.boozallen.com/content/dam/boozallen_site/esg/pdf/publications/esg-impact-report-2020.pdf.

Erik Kennedy

Erik Kennedy (he/him) is the author of the poetry collections Another Beautiful Day Indoors (2022) and There's No Place Like the Internet in Springtime (2018), both with Te Herenga Waka University Press, and he co-edited No Other Place to Stand, a book of climate change poetry from New Zealand and the Pacific (Auckland University Press, 2022). His poems, stories, and criticism have been published in places like berlin lit, FENCE, The Florida Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, Poetry, Poetry Ireland Review, Poetry Salzburg Review, the TLS, and Western Humanities Review. Originally from New Jersey, he lives in Ōtautahi Christchurch in Aotearoa New Zealand.

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