War on the Environment

January 15, 2019

War on the Environment

Adam Ghanem

Throughout history, the environment has always played a big role in war strategy. The armies of Ancient Rome sowed salt into the cropland of their enemies in order to ensure the capitulation of their opponents. This deemed the farmland useless. Though this strategy was effective in ensuring victory among the Romans, it had detrimental effects on the land and environment around it. This is only one of the early examples of the impacts war has on the environment.

Nagasaki and Hiroshima hold to be a more relevant and modern example of the impacts of war on the environment with the dropping of atomic bombs in both of these cities. When an atomic bomb explodes, the initial blast release enormous quantities of energy which is followed by temperatures of the explosion reaching upwards of 10 million degrees Celsius. This energy and heat are enough to decimate buildings, trees, animals, and humans in a 1-mile radius of the cities. The impacts go further with more long term impacts upon the land due to its radiation and radiation pollution. The susceptibility of genetic damages, due to the radiation, increase for both plants and animals alike. Animals and humans became more prone to developing leukemia and other genetic mutations which would affect future generations of offspring. The radiation affected their ecosystems and food chains through these genetic mutations. These genetic mutations were also able to reach fish as radioactive particles were also able to travel from the site of the atomic explosion to contaminate bodies of water and affect aquatic life.

Hiroshima

Plants, on the other hand, developed genetic mutations that would cause infertility in plants and lead to the stomata of the plant being completely damaged beyond use. These mutations would reduce the effectiveness of plant’s photosynthesis by up to 70% and would cause many plants to die. Many berries would also be contaminated from the radiation and would make their way into food chains through animals eating them and passing on the radioactive particles. This would only further the effects of the radiation upon the environment and ecosystems.

Mutated frog found in Hiroshima

Even beyond Hiroshima and Nagasaki, landscapes that are subjected to heavy use of military vehicles create toxic dust in the environment that contains aluminum, lead, and barium which settle on surrounding plant life preventing regeneration in the soil. For example, Afghanistan’s total forest coverage decreased by a whopping 38% due to war in the region. This is huge reduction to the Afghan forest that can never be recovered. In 2012 alone, 70 million metric tons of CO2 were emitted by the US Military.

The impacts of war on the environment span much farther than what one might see. The genetic mutations that develop transfer from animal to animal or plant to plant for generations. Each animal that is affected by the blast will also have a chain reaction of events that affect all animals in the ecosystem. If many secondary consumers die then the number of primary consumers will flourish disrupting the equilibrium of the ecosystem.

It is important to first understand the effects of war upon nature and people before supporting any cause that advocates for war. War affects much more than just humans but it affects those that we share the Earth with today. Is war justifiable despite the environmental impacts it can lead to? Why or why not? In what other ways has war affected the environment? What policies can be created to prevent natural environments from being destroyed by war?

Cites

https://www.anesi.com/ussbs01.htm#taaatjhi

https://www.thoughtco.com/the-effects-of-war-on-environment-1708787

https://www.envirotech-online.com/news/water-wastewater/9/breaking-news/how-does-war-affect-the-environment/31602

http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/radiations/effects/effects-of-radiation-on-plants-and-animals/63634

https://sciencing.com/environmental-effects-atomic-bomb-8203814.html

Comments

Anonymous said…

I do agree that throughout history, wars have proven to have devastating impacts on the environment as people who are desperate to end the conflict will be willing to do anything, including manipulating and harming the environment that provides sustenance to the human population. For example, the Gulf War, which was fought between Iraq, Kuwait, and other western countries in 1991 after Iraq claimed that Kuwait was illegally extracting oil from Iraq proved to be one of the most environmentally devastating wars. Specifically, Iraq dumped around one million tons of crude oil into the Persian Gulf, which is considered to be the largest oil spill to date. As a result, over 25,000 migratory birds were killed, local prawn fisheries and marine life in general was negatively impacted as warm water increased the natural breakdown of oil, and led to the formation of oil lakes that seeped into the groundwater supply. To continue, after fleeing Iraqi troops ignited the oil, a large amount of air pollutants was released into the air to accompany the oil fires, resulting in harmful smog formation from a layer of soot and acid rain, which impacted the health of not only the flora and fauna of the region, but also the people living there. Furthermore, many dams and sewage treatment plants were targeted to be destroyed, which not only caused sewage to flow into the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, but it also resulted in chemical pollutants to seep into the rivers, resulting in an unsafe water source to drink from and the spread of disease. Thus, because history has proven that even while engaging in wars, humans need to be more conscience of their impact on the environment as a whole and the consequences of their actions in the long term. (Source: https://www.lenntech.com/environmental-effects-war.htm)

January 16, 2019 at 11:10 AM

Caroline Tuggle said…

I completely agree with the claim this blog post is making. Wars and other human caused events more often than not result in mass amounts of pollution and environmental degradation. The fact that said pollution and environmental degradation is to the extent where it is genetically modifying plants and animals is absolutely awful and should be acted against immediately. The mutation of plants and animals will continue to affect those who consume them and will pass the mutated genes along to the new host as well. Humans can acquire diseases from these species that could be completely fatal. All together, I believe that the effects of war on the environment is a much bigger issue than meets the eye and should be tended to as quickly as possible.

January 16, 2019 at 12:59 PM

Anonymous said…

This post has made me really curious about what laws actual secure the environment during wartime and what is have found is pretty surprising as there have been several forays into the topic. The United Nations for example, has long attempted to protect the environment through international law. One of their measures, the Rio Convention in 1992 explained, “States shall ... respect international law providing protection for the environment in times of armed conflict and cooperate in its further development, as necessary.” However these efforts have not been very successful, as Shreya wonderfully puts it above, “25,000 migratory birds were killed” after Iraq puposely dumped one million tons of crude oil into the crude oil. These failures have prompted many to call for a 5th Geneva convention which would be aimed at making regulations on environmental damages in war.
Sources: The Rio Declaration on Environment and Developement
https://www.forensic-architecture.org/lexicon/5th-geneva-convention/
Shreya’s comment

January 16, 2019 at 12:59 PM

Anonymous said…

This discussion about war and the environment is pretty eye-opening, to be frank. People don’t realize that war doesn’t just affect humans, but it affects the livelihood of entire ecosystems. It’s almost like a chain reaction because one problem dominoes into another and affects life on all platforms. The genetic mutations that were brought up reminded me of the famous Chernobyl incident in Ukraine. This example wasn’t due to war, but it still serves as a reminder of the effects of radiation and factory waste on the environment. It caused birth defects in humans and animals, killed plants, and created new variations of species in a manner that was unprecedented. I think it’s important to note that human technologies (which are often used in wars) can have dramatic effects on ecosystems, even though we may not realize it. In the future, humans must make it a priority to analyze the biological effects of war tactics and pay it as much importance as effects on civilians.

January 16, 2019 at 1:04 PM

Anonymous said…

I do not believe that war is justifiable when you consider the environmental effects. I believe world leaders should greatly consider the environment effects of their decisions. For example, President Trump has given executive orders on bombing certain locations, such as Syria, with only the thought of how it would effect his opponents, not the environment. There is no justifiable reason for explaining why the planet, as a whole should, be affected by the desires of one nation. I feel like there’s not many regulations can be put in place to prevent this. Years ago, numerous countries agreed to not use gaseous weapons in war, but gas bombs and weapons are still used to day by different organizations. I feel like the only way to stop this, is to also stop war. Another example of war effecting the environment is the Vietnam war. Prior to invading Vietnam, the U.S. dropped thousand of napalm bombs on the large jungles in Vietnam in hope of killing the Viatmanese. Napalm is highly flammable and, therefore, large areas of Jungle suffered immensely under the intense fires.

January 16, 2019 at 1:08 PM

Anonymous said…

War not only negatively impacts humans, but also hurts the environment. Humans often become so consumed with winning that they do not consider how their conflicts can harm their surroundings, especially the environment. War is not justifiable because little good arises from it. War pollutes the water and soil because all of the chemicals from building and utilizing weapons. Soldiers often leave their supplies behind, littering the environment with plastics. Moreover, war destroys whole ecosystems because the soldiers are concerned with protecting the environment. Policies about protecting ecosystems at all times, especially war, should be created and enforced.

January 16, 2019 at 2:18 PM

Anonymous said…

I do not believe that war is justifiable because creating havoc on an environment is purely wrong. In most cases about war, no one thinks about how the environment will be affected and how the effects of the war could destroy the plants and the animals, or at least alter their lives in a different and difficult way. The idea of war is to essentially right a wrong, but in most cases, righting a wrong will only lead to more wrongs. War has other effects on an environment by changing the air quality. The use of weaponry and the factories to create the war efforts cause a lot of pollution in the air, along with all the gases emmited from the bombs. One way environments could be saved from after the war is by making people replant and clean the environment after the war. For example, if the US and Japan fight on Russian soil, the Russian should make the US and the Japanese regrow the environment themselves.

January 17, 2019 at 10:42 AM

Anonymous said…

War is definitely not justifiable in any case, regardless of the negative environmental impact. War destroys homes and tears families apart. Sure, war harms the environment from shooting guns to nuclear bombs. War causes the loss of many important habitats and ecosystems. I think a solution to this problem is to encourage our government to make laws that prevent certain lands and habitats from being harmed in the process of war. The modernization of warfare is increasingly affecting the environment. For example, umexploded ordnances could create a serious physical and chemical hazard for the species and populations living in areas that were once war zones. However, in conclusion, war is inhumane and unjustifiable. Violence is never the answer.

January 17, 2019 at 7:41 PM

Anonymous said…

This post was very interesting to me because we generally talk about how wars affect humans and their families and the loss that they suffer and we sometimes forget that there are so many more organisms that are affected by our actions. This post also shines light on the fact that although wars may only occur for a few years, their results and consequences are vast. They affect plants and animals, later affecting secondary consumers that may eat them in the future. This also relates to accumulation which we discussed in class because species may suffer greatly later from eating several plants and animals that were affected by radiation even if they were not directly affected by it themselves.

January 18, 2019 at 10:33 AM

Anonymous said…

The post has really showed the large unintended impacts of war, and human intervention in general. This really pushes for humans to rethink about all that they do to the environment. For example, the bombing were no doubt meant to destroy the infrastructure of Japan as the enemy, but they never took Pinot account the lasting impacts on the natural habituate. This can be seen with the mutated frogs and plants that will have a very hard life in their new environment and this horrible impact that can happen in the long run. It’s no secret that these impacts will cause issues for a long time. Furthermore, this loss of biodiversity will cause problems in the future.

January 18, 2019 at 9:57 PM

Anonymous said…

When looking at the devastating environmental effects that follow of it, the prospect of war seems to be completely unjustifiable. War, a last resort for groups of people, causes nothing but harm among humans, and as you have illuminated, destruction for the environment. Although some may argue that war has strategic importance in the advancement of certain nations, they fail to recognize the unintended side effects that accompany war. A story written by Mark Twain entitled the 'War Prayer' actually calls out this ignorance that comes with war, saying that people in war pray for victory, while also unintentionally calling for the utter destruction of their opponent. War should be avoided at all costs, or at least universal laws should be instituted to protect the environment in the case of war. Many writers have described the prospect of the globe facing nuclear fallout, and if we wish to prevent this bleak future, the environment must be prioritized, even in times of war.

January 21, 2019 at 1:42 PM

Anonymous said…

I never really thought about the effects that war had on the environment. Now looking at what you said, I come to realize how war has detrimental impacts on organisms and ecosystems, and how it creates chain reactions within them. I have always seen war as a negative to humans, more specifically, family’s being affected, homes being destroyed, and resources being depleted. Looking at all this negatives, war seems to be unjustifiable. It causes nothing but harm and destruction to our environments and ourselves. A possible solution to all of these could be implementing laws and policies to encourage the reconstruction of what is lost or destroyed.

January 21, 2019 at 5:51 PM

Anonymous said…

War is never justifiable, no matter how important the matter is. I have always thought of the human impact that wars bring out upon the society, only things such as deaths, new laws, and politics. It has never really occurred to me that the environment is also affected very much. War creates pollution, leads to habitat loss and disrupts the ecosystem. Not only does it affect families and humanity, it affects the organisms on earth that need to survive. War causes segregation and sublimation. For example, the Civil War. Both sides concluded that they were right, but never thought to come to some sort of agreement. Instead they were both headstrong at trying to win the war some thought could win and others couldn’t. The outcome led to more resources being depleted, such as ammunition, and grasslands being destroyed. The violent choices we make not only affect the future of our societies but our atmosphere and environment we live in. Wars create hazards for us all and can lead to domino effects of destruction.

January 21, 2019 at 9:28 PM

Anonymous said…

I do not think war is justifiable. War has a huge impact on people and the environment. People and the environment today are stil being affected by Hiroshima. Humans don’t understand how long term the consequences are and how much it affects the environment. Before reading this article I didn’t understand how badly war can affect the environment. Wars destroy land and habitats and causes pollution in the air. Bringing awareness to war effects on the environment can make a big impact. Different laws for reconstruction should be made along with laws limiting what types of weapons and land they use.

January 22, 2019 at 12:15 PM

Anonymous said…

Due to the consequences of war, it is never justifiable. In any circumstance, war rarely solves any major conflict without resulting in extreme detriments for both sides. Even so, most global conflicts can be solved through negociation and diplomacy. From an environmental standpoint, war has a wider impact than most people care to admit. Additionally, all processes of war affect the environment. The pollution that results from increased manufacturing and air travel can accelerate the environmental issues already present in society. To protect the environment, nations and international organizations must actively introduce and implement policy to regulate the use of nuclear weapons and the large transport of certain military equipment. Additionally, countries and ambassadors need to explore all options before resulting to war.

January 22, 2019 at 4:22 PM

Mallory Odom said…

The consequences of war on our health and environment are too great to make war justifiable. It causes too much destruction of the world's habitats, and puts people's lives at risk in many ways. War and specifically nuclear warfare cause incredible damage to our environment as they introduce dangerous chemicals into our atmosphere and air. My grandpa who served in Vietnam still struggles with health problems associated with his exposure to agent orange during his time of service. If more people realized the detrimental effects of war on our society, maybe future violent conflicts could be avoided in the interest of preserving our world.

January 22, 2019 at 4:30 PM

Anonymous said…

I knew about some cases that war was detrimental effects on the environment, but I never realized how serious it was.I understand that sometimes war is necessary for the safety of masses of people, but I think there are better ways to go about fighting. There are many instances when countries have used chemical weapons before knowing any of the consequences. I don't have a solution, but this is an area that should be explored. War causes more harm than good most of the time in many different areas. I think it should be avoided unless it is absolutely needed. The environment and people shouldn't suffer when there are better solutions to be explored!

January 22, 2019 at 6:00 PM

Anonymous said…

This post exemplifies how the unintended consequences of war, such as damage to the environment, are overlooked in favor of attention towards human losses. I feel that many politicians disregard environmental damage and the disruption of plant and animal ecosystems, and thus don’t attempt to solve these problems. Whether from dropped bullets or radiation from nuclear bombs, damage to the environment stemming from human warfare is a serious issue and should be noticed and treated that way. While war is fought to benefit one side, damage to the environment benefits nobody. I definitely agree that governments should introduce regulations to conserve the environment during war times and negotiate peacefully to avoid war altogether.

January 22, 2019 at 6:21 PM

Anonymous said…

It is interesting that a single event caused by humans can leave a lasting impact on the ecosystem for many decades. I feel that the environmental impact of war is overlooked by politics of war. Many people focus on the war itself but do not consider the aftermaths.

January 22, 2019 at 7:21 PM

Unknown said…

I think through an environmental perspective, war is unjustifiable. When it comes to war, people tend to focus on the impact it has one human life, failing to recognize the extremely detrimental effects it can have on the natural environment as well. In landscapes which have been subjected to excessive use by heavy military vehicles, toxic dust is a very real environmental issue. Containing heavy metals such as cobalt, barium, arsenic, lead and aluminum, toxic dust can cause serious respiratory disorders for military personnel and local residents alike. When settling on surrounding plant life, the toxic metals quash growth, contaminate soil and prevent regeneration. In order to prevent further destruction, I think it is important that people address the environmental impact of peace operations, as well as the need to address matters relating to the restoration and protection of the environment damaged by an armed conflict in peace processes. The need to remove or render harmless toxic and hazardous remnants of war on land and in the sea needs to be recognized, as is the important role of relevant international organizations.

January 22, 2019 at 7:44 PM

Unknown said…

^unknown is Hannah Lee

January 22, 2019 at 7:44 PM

Anonymous said…

I've never considered the amount of environmental damage massive war events such as the two Atomic bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. These events are defined as horrific mostly by their causality count, but few people actually have stopped to ponder the devastation the ecosystem endures. The area becomes virtually unlivable in situations such as Japan, and the radiation from these bombs still linger to this day. It's a shame how many politicians overlook this crucial con to waging war.

January 22, 2019 at 8:02 PM

Anonymous said…

I agree that wars extensively affect the environment, mostly negatively. From the impact radiation has on species to the destruction of land and forests, war almost always leads to some type of environmental destruction. However, saying that war is not justifiable because of its environmental impact ignores the economic, political, and biological implications of war that are sacrificed in addition to the environment; stating that the environmental impact alone is enough to end wars does not consider the reasons for war. Much more is lost than simply environmental sustenance; however, war is sometimes necessary and unavoidable. War also affects people living near the sites of warfare; often, their children have diseases stemming directly from chemical radiation. Restoration policies, such as policies that incentivize planting trees and cleanup zones, can ensure that the effects of war are not permanent. Overall, your blog sheds light on an aspect of war that is often ignored. It is important to consider the environmental impacts when going to war.

January 22, 2019 at 8:17 PM

Anonymous said…

This was a very interesting and enlightening topic to read about as I had never thought about it like this. We often read and learn about war after war in our history textbooks, but we never talk about any secondary environmental effects of such a conflict. This may sound pessimistic, but I don't believe that international regulations to the environment during times of war will be very effective. The first problem is even finding a common ground or even coming up with a law that both sides agree with. International law is already a hard ordeal to go through; however, this would only be exacerbated by the hostility of the two or more nations at war. With both sides harboring some type of dislike for the other side, a compromise seems hardly likely. The second problem is the honoring of such a law. What exactly will be stopping the two countries in the heat of the moment? In the end, the nation might have to come to a decision to either win the war with complete domination by means of destructive weapons or saving the environment. No matter how much I would like to believe the humanity in people, hostile nations will take any means necessary to ensure victory, pushing environmental consequence to the back of their mind.

January 22, 2019 at 8:19 PM

Anonymous said…

I think this post is interesting and really puts into perspective the unintentional effects of war on the environment. I think that more exposure of these negative effects on the environment can ultimately lead to more productive conversations and cause more awareness for the plants and animals around us. This post demonstrates how there is more to war than what meets the eye and that there can be detrimental consequences to the environment as a result it.

January 22, 2019 at 9:18 PM

Anonymous said…

When it comes to how war impacts a certain region people first look at the places habitability rather than the environment surrounding it and your blog provided interesting details on how the native species have been affected. I agree in that it is important that we try not to use radioactive materials that can harm an environment. The problem is diplomacy does not always work and war is a necessary step to reduce tensions. As we do continue governments need to keep in mind the destructive force of the nuclear bombs not only to people and economies but also the surrounding environment. A problem with imposing a law to protect environments during war is how will it be regulated and how will it be enforced. There is no means to enforce the law especially when war is going on between multiple nations. I feel like the nations in war may feel that if they have a lot at stake why would they care about the consequences of breaking a law and damaging the environment. Overall, the blog brings attention to a problem that is relatively overlooked in times of combat.

January 22, 2019 at 9:23 PM

Anonymous said…

I completely agree that human activities and wars cause enormous amounts of pollution in the environment. Additionally, to see how the pollution affects areas, we look at the environmental indicators. In order to reduce the amount of impact that wars and people have, the affects of our actions do need to be brought into the light and people need to become more aware of their actions.

January 23, 2019 at 12:52 PM

Anonymous said…

In terms of the environment war is not justified. Why? This is because the environment doesn’t get a say. Yes, its true that nature can’t talk to us, that the frogs can’t call out saying they don’t want six eyes. However, we can assume what the environment would want and we should respect those wishes. The environment clearly wouldn’t want the mass destruction of war or the mutation of its beautiful creations by dangerous chemicals. Who are we to dictate that the environments wishes don’t come first? While perhaps one can justify war in other perspectives in terms of the enirvonment it’ll never be justified unless Mother Nature comes and tells us that she likes war!

January 24, 2019 at 12:37 PM

Luke Farinelli said…

Many people always wonder what the next big war will be like, but unfortunately, with all of the advancements in technology and the shear amount of nuclear weapons in the world, I really hope future leaders consider the fact that something such as nuclear war would end in the possible end of a healthy planet. Maybe itll keep us peaceful but politics these days dont seem to care about the environment enough so I dont know.

January 25, 2019 at 5:25 PM

Luke Farinelli said…

This is Luke Farinelli

January 29, 2019 at 4:06 PM

Anonymous said…

This blogpost really puts into perspective the unintended outcomes of war. Who would have known that war would have effects other than those of political and economic issues? This is really interesting, and I would like to research more on how we can save the environment even when we are at war. I recently read an article that was based off of non combat war. This method allows for less bullet shells to be left to be decomposed by the environment, but this is a war with chemicals. By spraying from helicopters pesticide-like chemicals to hurt the people, this causes drastic social and environmental damage. Women could become infertile and major demographic issues would follow. The land that absorbs this chemical could also temporalily become infertile and birth defected plants. So the ultimate debate is: which is the better option for war?

January 30, 2019 at 7:09 AM

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