Ecocide is the destruction of the environment caused by humans. This harm threatens all people who rely on natural resources to keep ecosystems healthy and support future generations. A group of experts called the Independent Expert Panel for the Legal Definition of Ecocide describes it as "illegal or reckless actions done with knowledge that they could cause serious and widespread or long-term harm to the environment."

Common causes of ecocide include war, pollution, overuse of natural resources, and industrial accidents. The term "ecocide" became well-known when Olof Palme, a leader from Sweden, accused the United States of ecocide at the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment. He pointed to the use of Agent Orange and other chemicals by the U.S. during the Vietnam War.

The Rome Statute, which is the legal rulebook for the International Criminal Court (created in 1998 and used in 2002), does not include ecocide as a crime during peacetime, only during war. Ecocide was originally planned to be added to the Rome Statute, but the United Kingdom, France, and the United States opposed it.

This disagreement happened during discussions about the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG), which was created in 1948 and used in 1951. Some countries with a history of colonial rule were concerned about including cultural genocide in that agreement, which also affected the inclusion of ecocide.

Several countries have made ecocide a crime in their own laws. Many more countries and the European Union are considering doing the same. Groups like Stop Ecocide International are working to add ecocide to the Rome Statute, so it becomes a crime under both international and national laws. Countries such as Fiji, Niue, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Tonga, and Vanuatu support making ecocide a crime under international law.

Ecocide is a common topic in fictional stories. Many books and movies are set in a world after ecocide has happened. Examples include the Avatar films by James Cameron, Blade Runner, Mad Max, WALL-E, Interstellar, Threads, and Soylent Green.

Definition

The Independent Expert Panel for the Legal Definition of Ecocide, organized by the Stop Ecocide Foundation, defined ecocide in 2021 as 'illegal or reckless actions done with knowledge that there is a high chance of serious and either widespread or lasting harm to the environment caused by those actions.'

Ecocide can happen with or without intention. Environmental lawyer Polly Higgins explained that ecocide can be divided into two types: one with a clear human cause and one without. An example of ecocide without a clear human cause is damage caused by extreme weather events linked to climate change.

Arthur H. Westing discussed the role of intent in ecocide, stating that 'Intent might be hard to prove unless someone admits it, but I think it doesn't matter much.'

Causes

Ecocide can harm a people's culture and survival. Studies show that ecocide can have effects similar to genocide. Destroying the natural environment can cause cultural genocide by stopping people from living as they traditionally do. This is especially true for Indigenous people. Ecocide caused by climate change and taking natural resources may become a major cause of genocide worldwide. Some Indigenous scholars say ecocide and genocide cannot be separated. In recent discussions, the link between capitalism and ecocide has been debated. Scholars like Crook, Short, and South argue that capitalism worsens the effects of climate change, which then leads to more ecocide. Sometimes, the connection between land, capitalism, and war is unclear. For example, after the 2006 Lebanon War, Khayyat studied how the landscape of South Lebanon adapted to war's effects through both human and non-human actions, calling this idea "resistant ecology."

The mainstream understanding of genocide (as defined by the United Nations) only considers actions that harm individuals' bodies. Some researchers say this definition does not fully recognize the experiences of colonized Indigenous people who lost their connection to the land and their way of life without being physically killed. An example is Van Solinge's research on how resource exploitation in parts of Africa harmed Indigenous communities.

The ongoing loss of many species is called ecocide. US environmental theorist Patrick Hossay argues that modern industrial society causes ecocide. Climate change may lead to ecocide. For example, ocean acidification and rising temperatures harm coral reefs. However, ecocide of coral reefs is also caused by factors unrelated to climate change. Some people suggest making ecocide a crime under the Rome Statute to hold corporations accountable for climate change. Others argue that making ecocide a crime will not solve the main causes of the climate crisis.

Examples

Ecocide is recognized as a crime in only a few countries, but many examples of environmental harm have been described as ecocide by experts, reporters, leaders, and others.

One of the most debated parts of the U.S. military actions in Southeast Asia was the large-scale use of chemical defoliants between 1961 and 1971. Over 20 million gallons of harmful herbicides, such as Agent Orange, were sprayed on 6 million acres of forests and farmland by the U.S. Air Force. These chemicals were used to remove plant life to stop the Viet Cong from hiding weapons and supplies, and to reduce their access to food. Defoliation was also used to clear areas near military bases and along roads and waterways. More than 20% of South Vietnam's forests and 3.2% of its farmland were sprayed at least once. About 90% of the herbicides were used to destroy forests.

The chemicals used continue to change the environment, cause illnesses, birth defects, and harm the food chain. Combined with bombings and illegal hunting by locals for animal parts, Agent Orange led to the extinction of the Vietnamese Javan rhinoceros, reducing its population to 12 or fewer individuals in Cát Tiên National Park. The last member of this subspecies was killed by a poacher in 2010. The destruction caused by these actions, along with bombings, poaching, and wildlife trafficking, worsened the decline of other native species, such as the Indochinese tiger, Asian elephant, Edward's pheasant, northern white-cheeked gibbon, and saola. Official U.S. military records state that 20% of South Vietnam's jungles and 20-36% (or 20-50% in other reports) of its mangrove forests were destroyed. This environmental damage has been called ecocide by Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, lawyers, historians, and other experts.

According to a preliminary report, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused about 51 billion USD in environmental damage in both countries. A study by the Yale School of the Environment found that 687,000 tons of petrochemicals burned due to attacks, and nearly 1,600 tons of pollutants leaked into water sources. Toxic chemicals have contaminated about 70 acres of soil, making farming temporarily impossible. Around 30% of Ukraine’s land is now covered with explosives, and over 2.4 million hectares of forest have been damaged.

A peace organization in the Netherlands, PAX, reported that Russia’s targeting of industrial and energy sites caused serious pollution, and the use of explosives left millions of tons of polluted debris in cities. In early June 2023, the Kakhovka Dam, under Russian control, was damaged, causing flooding and warnings of an "ecological disaster."

The Ukrainian government, international observers, and journalists have described this damage as ecocide. Ukraine is investigating over 200 environmental war crimes and 15 cases of ecocide (a crime in Ukraine since 2001). President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukraine’s prosecutor general, Andriy Kostin, have met with European leaders, including Margot Wallström, Heidi Hautala, Mary Robinson, and Greta Thunberg, to discuss environmental harm and how to address it legally.

Indonesia has one of the fastest rates of deforestation in the world. In 2020, forests covered about 49.1% of Indonesia’s land, down from 87% in 1950. Since the 1970s, logging, plantations, and farming have caused much of this loss. Recently, the palm oil industry has been a major driver of deforestation, which has harmed the environment and displaced local communities.

The widespread deforestation and other environmental damage in Indonesia are often described by experts as ecocide. This has made Indonesia the largest emitter of greenhouse gases from forests globally. It also threatens the survival of native and indigenous species. An international group, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), identified 140 mammal species as threatened and 15 as critically endangered, including the Bali myna, Sumatran orangutan, and Javan rhinoceros.

After the Chernobyl disaster, four square kilometers of pine forest near the reactor turned reddish-brown and died, earning the name "Red Forest." Some animals in the worst-affected areas died or stopped reproducing. This event has been described by lawyers, experts, and journalists as an example of ecocide.

The effects of oil exploration in the Niger Delta have been severe. Local communities have seen little improvement in their quality of life while facing serious harm to their environment. Hazards from oil and gas exploration include air and water pollution, noise pollution, and deforestation. These issues harm aquatic life, human health, and forests. According to Nigerian government data, there were over 7,000 oil spills between 1970 and 2000.

It is estimated that cleaning up the Niger Delta, including restoring swamps, creeks, fishing areas, and mangroves, could take 25 years. The region is one of the most polluted places in the world. The heavy contamination of air, soil, and water with toxic substances is often cited as an example of ecocide.

Damage to the Amazon has been widely described by indigenous groups, human rights organizations, politicians, experts, and reporters as ecocide and a genocide. Indigenous leaders and human rights groups have submitted a report to the International Criminal Court against former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro for crimes against humanity and genocide for harming Indigenous people and destroying the Amazon. Another report has been submitted for ecocide by Indigenous leaders.

The large-scale and lasting destruction of agriculture in Gaza has led to calls for an investigation into the Israeli government for the Rome Statute war crime of ecocide. This is due to "widespread, long-term, and severe damage to the natural environment," as stated by the research group Forensic Architecture at Goldsmiths, University of London, and the Palestinian Environmental NGOs Network.

International law

There is no international law that stops ecocide during peacetime, but the Rome Statute says it is a crime to:

The United Nations' International Law Commission (ILC) thought about adding ecocide to the Draft Code of Crimes Against the Peace and Security of Mankind, which later became the Rome Statute. Article 26, which focused on environmental crimes, was supported by 19 countries in the Legal Committee but was removed because of opposition from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

In 1977, the United Nations passed the Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques. Article I of this agreement states, "Each State Party to this Convention agrees not to use environmental modification techniques for military or hostile purposes that cause widespread, long-lasting, or severe harm to another State Party." The terms "widespread, long-lasting, or severe" are not defined in the agreement.

In February 2024, the European Parliament passed a law that makes large-scale, intentional environmental damage "comparable to ecocide" a crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison. European Union members had two years from that date to include this crime in their national laws. As of early 2024, more people are calling for ecocide to be recognized as an international crime.

Efforts to make ecocide a crime have aimed to include it in the list of crimes the International Criminal Court (ICC), created by the Rome Statute, can prosecute. These crimes include genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.

In 2010, environmental lawyer Polly Higgins proposed to the United Nations International Law Commission a definition of ecocide that includes damage caused by individuals, corporations, or governments. It also covers environmental destruction from "other causes," such as harm not caused by humans. The goal was to create a duty to prevent both natural disasters and human-caused environmental harm. This proposal has not been accepted by the United Nations.

On January 22, 2013, a group of 11 citizens from nine European Union countries started the European Citizens Initiative (ECI) to "End Ecocide in Europe." The initiative aimed to criminalize ecocide, stop investments in harmful activities, and block EU market access for products linked to ecocidal actions. Three European Parliament members signed the initiative, but it did not collect the required one million signatures. However, it was discussed in the European Parliament.

In December 2019, at the 18th session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, Vanuatu and the Maldives asked for ecocide to be added to the Statute.

In June 2021, an international group of lawyers proposed a definition of ecocide and suggested changing the Rome Statute to include ecocide as an international crime. The group included members from the UK, Senegal, the US, France, Ecuador, Bangladesh, Sierra Leone, Samoa, and Norway.

Many important people have supported making ecocide a crime at the International Criminal Court. World leaders, environmentalists, and celebrities, including Pope Francis, Antonio Guterres, Greta Thunberg, Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa, Emmanuel Macron, Jane Goodall, and Paul McCartney, have publicly supported this idea.

At the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme called the damage from Agent Orange in the Vietnam War "ecocide" and urged it to be made an international crime. In 2017, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said it is "highly desirable" to include ecocide as a crime at the International Criminal Court. Pope Francis, in a 2019 speech, described ecocide as "the loss, damage, and destruction of ecosystems that severely affect people’s ability to enjoy their environment." He also said "sins against ecology" should be part of Catholic teachings.

Environmentalist Jane Goodall said the idea of ecocide as a crime is "long overdue" and could change how people view environmental issues. In 2023, Greta Thunberg, Luisa Neubauer, Anuna de Wever, and Adélaïde Carlier wrote an open letter asking European Union leaders to support making ecocide an international crime. At the 54th session of the Human Rights Council, Volker Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, supported making ecocide a crime at both national and international levels.

Stop Ecocide International (SEI) is an organization that works to change the Rome Statute to include ecocide as a crime. It collaborates with governments, politicians, diplomats, and the public. SEI has groups in nearly 50 countries. Its sister organization, the Stop Ecocide Foundation, brought together a group of legal experts to define ecocide.

History

The idea of ecocide began in the 1970s after the United States caused serious harm to the environment in Vietnam by using Agent Orange and other chemicals during the Vietnam War. The term was first used at a conference in Washington, D.C., where American scientist Arthur Galston suggested creating a new international rule to stop ecocide.

International law professor Richard Falk called the military actions in Vietnam a type of "environmental warfare." He said the amount of chemical spraying, tree cutting, and weather changes reached a level that could be considered an ecocidal crime. Falk also pointed out that the U.S. government has hidden or changed facts about these actions, showing the challenges of making ecocide a legal crime.

After the war, scientific research about the environment was very limited. A study in 2021 showed that only one wildlife-related study had been done since the war. This lack of research means important questions about how the environment recovered remain unanswered. Experts say this gap in information shows a lack of attention from governments and schools.

Even though many people around the world were upset, the U.S. government said using defoliants was a legal military tactic. This view made the problem seem like a small, temporary result of a necessary war, not a serious crime. This helped stop the idea of ecocide from being widely accepted.

In 1972, at the United Nations Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment, Sweden’s Prime Minister Olof Palme called the Vietnam War an ecocide. Leaders from India and China also criticized the war for its harm to people and the environment, saying ecocide should be an international crime. A group called the Working Group on Crimes Against the Environment was formed, and a draft agreement to define ecocide as a war crime was sent to the United Nations in 1973. This agreement said humans have caused lasting damage to the environment during war and peace.

In 1978, the International Law Commission included a statement in its Yearbook that serious harm to the environment, such as polluting the air or oceans, could be an international crime. Countries like Romania, Austria, and Rwanda supported making ecocide a crime.

In 1987, the International Law Commission discussed adding "ecocide" to the list of international crimes, along with issues like nuclear weapons and colonialism.

In 1996, lawyer Mark Gray proposed making ecocide an international crime based on existing environmental laws. He said causing large-scale harm to the environment violates a duty to protect humanity. He suggested that deliberate or careless actions causing serious, long-lasting damage to the environment should be called ecocide.

In 2011, the Hamilton Group created a mock law called the Ecocide Act and tested it in a trial in the UK Supreme Court.

In 2012, a paper on the Law of Ecocide was sent to governments. At a conference in Brazil, leaders were asked to consider making ecocide a crime. This idea was chosen as one of the top 20 solutions for sustainability at a youth event in Rio de Janeiro.

In 2012, a conference in Rome, hosted by the United Nations, said environmental crime is a new type of crime that needs more attention. One result was a study to define environmental crime and consider making ecocide a crime.

In 2019, Pope Francis asked the world to recognize ecocide as a "fifth category of crime against peace."

In 2019, 24 scientists asked that ecocide in war zones be treated as a war crime.

In 2020, a group of lawyers started drafting a law to make ecocide a crime.

In 2021, the European Parliament passed two reports supporting the idea of ecocide as a crime. It also called for improving laws to protect the environment and hold polluters accountable.

In 2021, 179 countries agreed to support making ecocide a crime.

In 2020, leaders from Pacific island nations called for ending fossil fuels and strengthening environmental laws, including making ecocide a crime.

In 2023, European Union leaders agreed on a new law that allows jail time for the worst polluters and fines up to 5% of a company’s global income. The law was approved in 2024 and is now called the Directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law.

Domestic law

Ten countries have made ecocide a crime within their own laws during peacetime. These countries used the language from a rule in the International Law Commission's draft, which described causing "serious, long-lasting harm to the environment" during war. This rule was later removed from the final version of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in 1996. None of these countries have created ways to determine if someone acted on purpose.

The countries with laws against ecocide are (in alphabetical order):

• Armenia (2003)
• Belarus (1999)
• Belgium (2023)
• Chile (2023)
• Ecuador (2008; 2014)
• France (2021)
• Georgia (1999)
• Kazakhstan (1997)
• Kyrgyzstan (1997)
• Moldova (2002)
• Russia (1996)
• Tajikistan (1998)
• Ukraine (2001)
• Uzbekistan (1994)
• Vietnam (1990)

In 2021, the French National Assembly passed a law to create an "ecocide" offense as part of a group of actions to protect the environment and address climate change.

In popular culture

For more information about stories that show the effects of nuclear war on the environment, see the List of nuclear holocaust fiction.

Many movies show the harm caused by ecocide and its effects, such as:
• Arjuna
• Blade Runner: Black Lotus
• Extrapolations
• Silo (TV series)
• The 100
• Travelers

Several documentaries discuss this topic, including:
• Poisoning Paradise: Ecocide New Zealand
• Ecocide changer ou disparaître
• Ecocide: Voices from Paradise
• Heart of Mother Earth