The environment as casualty of war

“Conflict aggravates climate change vulnerability, and vice versa,” states the The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), “each reinforcing the severity of the other and driving the state and its people into a cycle of fragility.” 

A 2019 study by Stanford University found that climate change contributed to three to 20 per cent of global conflicts over the past century. 

READ: Ecocide and resistance in Palestine

As global temperatures continue to rise, this influence is expected to increase. Reviewing 55 studies, Marshall Burke and colleagues found that a one-standard-deviation increase in local temperature raises the likelihood of intergroup conflict by 11 per cent.

Contaminates

The military forces of the world, in turn, feed the fire. The US Department of Defense alone is the world’s single largest institutional consumer of oil,  and as a result, one of the world’s top greenhouse gas emitters.

According to reports, Israeli military operations in Gaza have generated more planet-heating emissions in just two months than the annual output of some 20 climate-vulnerable nations.

The vast majority of the 281,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide released in the first 60 days of the conflict – more than 99 per cent – stemmed from Israel’s aerial bombardments and ground intervention. That figure is equivalent to burning at least 150,000 tonnes of coal.

By contrast, Hamas rocket fire into Israel during the same period produced an estimated 713 tonnes of emissions – roughly the same as burning 300 tonnes of coal.

Reports have also pointed to Israel’s use of white phosphorus shells, a weapon that contaminates soil and can cause long-term environmental harm.

Cycle

Beyond the immediate destruction, experts warn that the climate costs of post-war reconstruction in Gaza will be immense, with rebuilding expected to lock in further emissions for years to come.

The Palestinian Institute for Climate Strategy report this September estimates that Israel and its allies owe $148 billion in climate reparations for military emissions since the Nakba. Israel is responsible for $103 billion, the US $40.8 billion, with the remainder attributed to European allies.