2023-06-06 20:00:33
The war violence in Ukraine is claiming more victims, besides civilians and soldiers. Large coniferous forests, the habitat of birds and (mammal) animals, go up in flames. Tanks, bombs and rattling guns blast millions of tons of CO2emissions into the air.
Add to that the climate impact of destroyed buildings and infrastructure, plus the methane leaks from the sabotaged Nordstream I and II gas pipes. This results in a total climate damage from the Ukraine war of more than 119 million tons of greenhouse gas, the same as the annual CO2emissions from Belgium.
A group of renowned climate scientists, with the cooperation of the Ukrainian Ministry of the Environment, will present these findings at a meeting of the United Nations on Wednesday.
Partly dependent on estimates and models
They do not claim that all CO2sums are accurate to the decimal point. “We are partly dependent on estimates and models,” says lead researcher Lennard de Klerk, a Dutch environmental expert who lives in Hungary.
Nevertheless, according to him, the calculations are roughly correct. In a report, the researchers substantiated all their sums with traceable sources, such as satellite images.
De Klerk sees the damage caused to nature reserves and the climate as a result of the Ukraine war as a ‘silent disaster’. According to him, attention in politics and the media is, logically, primarily focused on human suffering and fatalities. “Meanwhile, climate and nature are also being dealt an extremely sensitive blow.”
While the CO2global emissions should fall quickly to bring the Paris climate goals within reach, the Ukraine war has caused the emissions of a small industrial country to soar into the atmosphere. And while biodiversity is under pressure worldwide and needs a boost, fragile ecosystems are being destroyed locally.
The report serves as a basis for assessing whether Russia can be held liable for the climate and nature damage. A (relatively small) part of the emissions and hot spots can be attributed to the defense by Ukrainian troops. As an aggressor, Putin would be held liable. “International explorations are starting for this,” says De Klerk, who is closely involved.
Ecocide is included as a criminal offense in Ukrainian statute books
The natural damage suffered as a result of the war, labeled by legal experts as ecocide, seems promising in the event that the Russians are held liable, as chief prosecutor Iryna Venediktova wants. Ecocide is included as a criminal offense in Ukrainian statute books.
“It seems much more complex to recover climate damage from Russia,” says De Klerk. “Because the warming caused by greenhouse gas does not necessarily affect Ukraine, but the whole world.” It is possible that UN countries will make an effort together, possibly only when the war is over.
During the next UN climate summit, at the end of this year in the United Arab Emirates, lawyers and research teams want to clarify this
Meanwhile, the Ukraine war is also leading to climate gains, the researchers confirm in the study. Homes and businesses became more energy efficient, oil and natural gas from Russia were banned. “Unfortunately, energy from coal has partly replaced it,” notes De Klerk. Together with the polluting transport of liquefied gas (LNG) in ships, the climate benefits of a sustainable impulse might easily be nullified.
Ukraine hopes for a ‘sustainable reconstruction’
Part of the climate damage may still be limited to some extent. Ukraine hopes for a ‘sustainable reconstruction’ if the country wins the battle. This would be possible by building houses and buildings in a low-emission manner with green materials, with the help of EU countries, without too much wasteful concrete and steel.
The fact that these raw materials pollute a lot was also apparent during the war. Because part of the climate damage is caused by so-called dragon’s teeth that Russia places. These are point-shaped concrete pillars arranged in rows, intended to ward off Ukrainian tanks at strategic locations.
De Klerk: “The installation of dragon teeth is highly polluting. Can you imagine what a climate impact it would have if cities are not repaired in an environmentally friendly way, with clean technology, when there is peace soon.”
Read also:
A silent climate disaster: the Ukraine war has added an industrial country
Researchers previously looked at the damage to climate and nature following seven months of war in Ukraine. It then became clear: the damage to construction, fires and gas leaks is particularly serious.
The war is a disaster for biodiversity, also outside Ukraine
One fifth of the protected areas in Ukraine, 600 species of animals and 750 species of plants suffer from the war. Damage to biodiversity is also occurring outside the country.
1686151351
#climate #nature #hit #hard #Ukraine #war
