Conflits armés et environnement

Armed conflict and war are major impediments to sustainable development in numerous countries. In addition to well known dramatic humanitarian effects, it leads to less well known serious and important environmental impacts. From degradation of natural resources, such as water, agricultural land, forest and biodiversity to collateral environmental damages such as oil spills, and finally to the collapse of environmental governance, environmental impacts of conflicts may seriously affect post conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction and may sustain conditions of personal civil unrest afterwards. Numerous examples of such damages are now well documented from conflict-affected area. This paper discusses the applicability and usefulness of well established environmental assessment processes in various phases of conflict with emphasis on prevention, anticipation and attenuation of possible impacts.The analysis shows that environmental assessment may play a great role in situation of conflict, both at the pre- and post-conflict stage, and in some degree during the syn-conflict phases. In post-conflict phases, Environmental Assessment (EIA) methods can be used to evaluate environmental damages and to some degrees help in their mitigation. A number of evaluation and measuring techniques, such as diachronic satellite imagery analysis, field surveys, and other methods can then be used to measure the impacts as part of a standard Environmental and Social Impact Study. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), in some circumstances, can be used for the post-conflict phase in assessing overall priorities and avoiding poorly planned reconstruction in terms of environmental management. Upstream from conflict, while some elements of potential collapse of environmental governance is foreseen, some form of advanced strategic environmental assessment could help to anticipate impacts and design Involuntary Resettlement Plan with least environmental damages, or plans for monitoring Protected Areas or World Heritage sites. Not much can be done during the actual conflict phase, but a number of International legal instruments do exist that deal with the Protection of the Environment in war times; belligerents should be duly informed and reminded of those as preventive and protective measures of the environment. A number of articles of The Hague Conventions (1907), the Constitution Accord of the Nuremberg Tribunal (1945) and of the Geneva Conventions (1949) altogether indirectly forbid and prevent abusive and destructive behaviours towards the environment in the conduct of war. More specifically however, the ENMOD Convention (1976), Protocol I of Geneva (1977) and Directives of the Red Cross (1996) deal directly with the protection of the environment