Pentagon Must Examine Contractors’ Climate Risk: GAO (Corrected)

The Department of Defense isn’t adequately accounting for the effects of climate change on contractors’ infrastructure and supply chains, according to a report issued Monday by the Government Accountability Office.

The Defense Department and its military departments are “potentially jeopardizing their missions” by not accounting for climate risks, such as floods damaging facilities or cutting off access to services like information technology, the yearlong GAO audit found.

If the department doesn’t take steps to update its climate resilience guidance for critical commercial facilities, it will leave “gaps in its knowledge” of potential climate and weather risks, the GAO said.

The ...