The U.S. Coast Guard is tasked with defending more than 47,000 miles of Arctic shoreline around Alaska. Yet it may not be fully prepared for increasing threats from climate change, increased shipping activity and the heightened risk of geopolitical conflict.
A federal report published last month found that Coast Guard documents that are supposed to detail mission performance targets and resource hour use have been missing or incomplete since 2016. And although the Coast Guard does have an Arctic plan — outlining action items aimed at better protecting the Alaskan shore — the strategy fails to set performance benchmarks or timeframes for most of its objectives.
That makes it difficult for the Coast Guard to ensure its Arctic activities align with its long-term strategic goals, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the agency that published the Aug. 13 report.
The GAO report also warns that the Coast Guard’s Arctic operations are threatened by equipment and workforce shortages, limited infrastructure in remote parts of Alaska, and other maintenance and logistics challenges.
