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A European-based research collective has assessed the carbon footprint of the Russian invasion of Ukraine over the first 24 months. According to their report, the total amount of climate damage caused by this conflict amounts to an estimated $32 billion.
A European-based research collective has assessed the carbon footprint of the Russian invasion of Ukraine over the first 24 months. According to their report, the total amount of climate damage caused by this conflict amounts to an estimated $32 billion.
Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russian armed forces in February 2022, the human and financial toll of the conflict has been mounting month by month. But the environmental impacts are also beginning to be documented. An extensive report, published June 13 by the Initiative on GHG Accounting of War (an association of climate experts based in Europe assessing the impact of Russia's invasion on the climate) estimates the total cost of climate damage caused by this conflict at $32 billion.
According to the study, the 24 months following Russia's invasion of Ukraine resulted in the emission of 175 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. The authors of the report estimate that this figure is greater than the annual emissions of a country like the Netherlands, or equivalent to putting 90 million new gasoline-powered cars on the road.
A third of war-related emissions come directly from military activity, notably the fuel used by Russian troops, which alone accounts for 35.2 million tonnes CO2e, compared with 9.4 million tonnes for Ukrainian troops. The use of explosives, steel and other high-carbon materials for ammunition production has also risen sharply, accounting for 4.1 million tonnes CO2e.
High-carbon materials such as steel and concrete, used to rebuild destroyed infrastructure (houses, schools, bridges, factories, etc.), also weigh in the balance (0.5 million tonnes CO2e). "Additional GHG emissions are caused by manufacturing of military equipment that has been destroyed and damaged during the war, as well as long-distance arms deliveries by allies," the report states.
Previous studies have warned of the consequences of this conflict for biodiversity. The survival of dolphins is threatened by noise pollution from military vessels, for example, while millions of hectares of Ukrainian farmland have become minefields.
