International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict.

06 November 2007- On 5 November 2001, the General Assembly declared 6 November of each year as the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict.  In taking this action, it considered that damage to the environment in times of armed conflict impairs ecosystems and natural resources long after the period of conflict, often extending beyond the limits of national territories and the present generation. The Assembly also recalled the United Nations Millennium Declaration, which emphasized the necessity of working to protect our common environment.

Amid the destruction and loss of life of armed conflict sometimes the long term environmental costs can be overlooked. 

“Undoubtedly it is the loss of human life, the suffering of those made homeless and hungry that must be our primary, first, concern,” said former United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Klaus Toepfer in his editorial In Defence of the Environment, Putting Poverty to the Sword.  “But all too often the impact on the Earth’s life support systems is ignored, and ignored, I would suggest, at our peril as the growing expertise of UNEP’s Post Conflict Assessment Branch is suggesting.”

For example in the 34-day conflict in Lebanon, which took place between July and August 2006 the physical damage to the city extended beyond shattered buildings. 

Many of the bombed and burnt out factories and industrial complexes such as the Jiyeh power plant south of Beirut were contaminated with a variety of toxic and health hazardous substances.  Urgent action was needed to remove and safely dispose of these substances, which included ash and leaked chemicals amid concerns they represent a threat to water supplies and public health.

Wide-spread damage to Lebanon’s water supply and sewage networks also occurred. Prior to the conflict, the networks had been undergoing comprehensive upgrading and modernisation. 

“These networks were extensively damaged in the conflict and hence present a risk of groundwater contamination and a potential public health hazard. Waste water management constitutes a major chronic environmental stress factor,” said a report, prepared by UNEP’s Post Conflict Branch.

Similar concerns were documented in a 2003 report prepared by UNEP about the environmental impact of the war in Iraq.   The report also pointed out that the use of chemical weapons in the first Gulf war and the subsequent bombings of chemical weapons facilities throughout the 90s had a severe impact on the environment that can be felt today even independently of the current Gulf War. 

Also the burning of oil fields in the first Gulf War leading to the pollution of the seas and water supplies still impacts the health of the region today.  

This environmental impact contributes to the lasting legacy of any armed conflict.  It can work against the recovery and aid being brought to the victims, as well as the long-term health of the society and its neighbours.  On this day we remind ourselves to always be aware of this legacy of armed conflict as well.