WASHINGTON, USA – The US Department of the Treasury, on Thursday, released the Treasury Climate Action Plan, which is directed by Section 211 of Executive Order 14008 and Treasury’s efforts to bolster adaptation and increase resilience of its facilities and operations to the impacts of climate change.
“Climate change isn’t just a specter on the horizon, a problem for future generations. It is a present challenge, and we must adapt,” said secretary Janet L. Yellen. “Treasury’s climate action plan lays out how our Department should begin to change the way we work so that even as we face the increasing effects of climate change, our ability to serve the American people does not.”
Treasury anticipates that climate change will continue to be a significant global challenge and that aspects of its mission and operations will be impacted by global warming, sea-level rise, increased intensity and frequency of major weather events, and impacts on energy availability.
The Climate Action Plan establishes five priority action areas that will be focused on agency work and initiatives to strengthen and build upon Treasury’s climate resilience and adaptive capabilities:
- Rebuild programs and capabilities that may have atrophied or stagnated in recent years;
- Address climate change impacts and vulnerabilities across the range of Departmental operations, including administrative, manufacturing, and law enforcement activities;
- Ensure a climate-focused approach to managing Treasury’s real property portfolio footprint;
- Enable procurement management to fully consider climate change realities; and
- Provide, measure, and account for a financial investment approach appropriate to the Department’s climate objectives.
In addition to the above priority areas, Treasury will follow the data and science of climate change to adjust policies, programs, and activities to improve its resilience and adaptation to climate risks and impacts. In doing so, Treasury continues to examine its vulnerabilities, such as violent weather impacts on its facilities, supply chain disruptions, and the unavailability of energy supply.
Guided by anticipated Federal Acquisition Regulation changes, Treasury will work to shape its procurement policies so that it prioritizes climate change and environmental justice in purchasing decisions. Treasury will also launch its climate literacy initiative that will address the significant loss of expertise and general knowledge on the part of the workforce through education and information dissemination developed specifically for this critical need.
Treasury’s Climate Action Plan provides guiding principles and direction, aligned to the Treasury Department’s Fiscal Year 2022 – 2026 Strategic Plan, for Treasury bureaus to develop bureau-level Climate Action Plans, which will align to bureau-specific capabilities.
