Military Green leaflet - European Defence Agency

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The European Defence Agency works to foster European defence cooperation to become more costefficient and increase capabilities. An agency of the Council, we combine ministerial-level political influencewith technical expertise to deliver capabilities, drawing on input from all stakeholders. Pooling capabilitiesare cornerstones alongside collaborative efforts ranging from disruptive research through effective test,evaluation and procurement onto delivering hands-on capabilities.Effective Defence and Crisis ManagementEnergy is the backbone of defence and crisismanagement. It is essential for the effectivenessof operations. It also ensures sustaining ahigh level of preparedness for prospective future EUCommon Security and Defence Policy operations aswell as for conventional territorial defence. With thedays of its unlimited access long gone, steps towardsincreasing efficiency and reducing consumption offermany new benefits and opportunities. The subsequentreduction in fossil fuel consumption cuts costs,decreases emissions and reduces our dependencieson non-European sources. The number of casualtiescan be reduced significantly on account of therebeing fewer fuel convoys for adversaries to target,freeing up resources that are used for protecting theconvoys. Overall capabilities are made more effectivethrough enhanced endurance, mobility and autonomy.A Step beyond Reducing the FootprintMilitary Green is EDA’s vehicle for the will oftwenty-six Member States to make an environmentaldifference. It is a strategic tool supportingthe mitigation of adverse effects to the climateand ecology while strengthening defence and crisismanagement capabilities. It deals with environmentalvalues in the Defence and Crisis Management Community.It tackles our habits of consumption whenpreparing for operations and while conducting them.It promotes development and implementation of novelenvironmentally responsible technologies. In additionit offers to take us a step beyond merely reducingour own footprint. Educating the local population onthe benefits of taking environmental responsibilitywhile providing the necessary green policy andtechnological building blocks enables post conflictreconstruction to contribute to long term stabilityand sustainable development.2 M I L I T A R Y G R E E N
Climate, Ecology and ResilienceCenturies of human exploitation of the earth’sresources have stretched its resilience to thelimit. The global consensus that this is notsustainable has in recent decades resulted in theadoption of international policies and strategies.For Europe this has translated into a vision forachieving growth in a resource efficient Europewith a low carbon economy. Increasing energyefficiency, reducing consumption and reducingemissions of greenhouse gasses are vital. Thesame applies to mitigating the loss of biodiversityin order to ensure the quality of essentials suchas water, air and soil.Doing nothing can increase average temperatures,which in some regions might raise sea levels causingfloods while in others may result in water scarcityand drought. Continuing to pollute air, soiland water can impair life-support including thecapability of producing food. Thus, in addition tothese humanitarian risks, changes to climate andecology can threaten international security ashighlighted in the European Security Strategy. Bypulling its weight the Defence and Crisis ManagementCommunity can help reduce the likelihood ofthese sorts of crisis occurring.European Defence Agency’s Step ForwardMilitary Green builds on legislation and EUdirectives. It further capitalises on the newEnvironmental Protection Concept. The Conceptis being developed by the EU Military Staff andaims at establishing the principles and responsibilitiesto meet the requirements of EnvironmentalProtection during EU-led military operations.EDA uses Military Green as an umbrella for fosteringresponsible and more effective capabilities forthe future. It tackles increasing energy efficiencyand reducing consumption. It bolsters better waterand waste management. It drives developmenttowards more eco-friendly materials and munitions.Enablers include understanding the impacton the climate and ecology, increasing awarenessamong stakeholders and establishing dedicatedgreen policies and strategies.The preparation and deployment of an operationcan be described as a cycle of different phases.This is also applicable to the process of developing,purchasing and using materiel. Each phase inthe two life-cycles comes with an environmentalfootprint. Good initial planning helps identify thenecessary measures to be taken for each phase,mitigating adverse effects that could otherwisesurface decades later.M I L I T A R Y G R E E N3
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Military Green leaflet - European Defence Agency

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