West Virginia Executive Summer 2018 | Page 66

local officials and either state or regional climate experts to
assess the greatest near-term threats as a combination of ex-
treme weather, flooding and population or critical infrastruc-
ture assets exposed,” says Titley. “That type of analysis allows
the state to prioritize projects. As funds become available at
the state, local or federal levels, they can work on those proj-
ects in priority order.”
Preparing for Threat Multiple
According to Titley, a retired rear admiral for the U.S. Navy
whose duties included serving as commander of the Naval
Meteorology and Oceanography Command, climate change
also presents a serious threat to the country’s national secu-
rity infrastructure.
“Climate change changes the physical operating environment
in which our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines operate;
threatens the infrastructure of our bases and training ranges,
many of which are either on the coast or in the southwestern
U.S.; and, when combined with poor or ineffective governance,
can tip a bad situation into a catastrophic one with unknow-
able but usually negative implications for regional or global
stability,” he says.
This threat to national security in the U.S. is labeled as a
threat multip le, meaning it takes existing tensions and conflicts
and exacerbates them. Rising sea levels and extreme heat have
the ability to affect physical infrastructure, food production
and transportation networks, and the U.S. military is actively
working with allies around the world to study potential weath-
er-related threats and preparing to deploy as needed.
Congratulations to
The Honorable Frederick P. Stamp, Jr.,
Linsly Trustee, on being selected as a
Lawyers & Leaders award winner.
Linsly is...
more than
just a school.
Just ask Kaitlyn Pytlak, Linsly Class of 2009 and
West Virginia University College of Law graduate.
“When your child comes to Linsly, it’s not for four years,
five years, or even eight years–it’s for a lifetime.”
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©2018, THE LINSLY SCHOOL, 60 KNOX LANE, WHEELING, WV 26003. THE LINSLY SCHOOL IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY SCHOOL.
64
WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
“There is much we can do to be more resilient,” says Mann.
“As a country, we need to adapt our infrastructure to better deal
with extreme rainfall and flooding events, more intense heat
waves and other climate change impacts. This can provide jobs.”
Mann believes that as the country moves forward in its
goal to combat climate change, West Virginia must also look
to the future.
“Coal is increasingly automated and provides few jobs,” he
says. “Renewable energy like wind and solar can provide far
more jobs, and the state must support job training programs
and other incentives to help the population pivot away from
fading industries to new ones. West Virginia can be both part
of the climate change solution and grow its economy at the
same time.”
While Titley acknowledges the serious human cost of economic
dislocation and moving beyond coal and other fossil fuels,
he also believes the state should transition to new industries.
“I’ve seen economic dislocation, and it hurts,” he says. “West
Virginia, like all states, should be preparing its population and
workforce for successful careers and prosperous living stan-
dards in a non-carbon-based energy economy, even if that
economy is still several decades away. While change is hard,
ignoring the change will only make it harder to transition job
skills. It will require vision and leadership, but the alternative
is irrelevance and lost decades.”
At the end of the day, Titley says we have only two choices—
suffer through the changing climate or improve our quality
of life by reducing our output of greenhouse gases—and to
him, the right choice is clear.