Environmental terrorism consists of one or more unlawful or even hostile actions that harm or destroy
environmental resources or deprive others of their use. It is different to environmental vandalism, which is a rather permitted but ethically disputed destruction of environment. More colloquially, the phrase is also used to label actions seen as the unnecessary or unjustified destruction of the environment for personal or corporate gain.
Definition
There are academic and semantic difficulties in defining "terrorism" and specifically "environmental terrorism", but discussions of environmental
terrorism
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
are growing with a focus on identifying possible risks to
natural resources
Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...
or environmental features. Some,
including in the military
argue that attacks on natural resources can now cause more deaths, property damage, political chaos, and other adverse effects than in previous years.
Chalecki distinguishes between environmental terrorism and
eco-terrorism
Eco-terrorism is an act of violence which is committed in support of environmental causes, against people or property.
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines eco-terrorism as "...the use or threatened use of violence o ...
. She notes that environmental terrorism can be defined "as the unlawful use of force against in situ environmental resources so as to deprive populations of their benefit(s) and/or destroy other property". In contrast, eco-terrorism is the destruction of property in the interest of saving the environment from human encroachment and destruction. More concisely, environmental terrorism involves targeting natural resources. Eco-terrorism involves targeting the built environment such as roads, buildings and trucks, in defense of natural resources. Other analysts may fail to distinguish between these different threats.
Examples
Incendiary balloons from the Gaza Strip were used to burn down approximately 2,260 acres of woodland in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
during the first half of 2018.
[Doug Weir]
"Israeli protected areas seem doomed to be the latest environmental victim of the ongoing conflict"
Conflict and Environment Observatory, July 11, 2018
Children of Fire Initiative
A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...
, an organization believed to be an offshoot of
PKK
The Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK is a Kurdish militant political organization and armed guerrilla movement, which historically operated throughout Kurdistan, but is now primarily based in the mountainous Kurdish-majority regions of sout ...
, claimed responsibility for multiple
arson
Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wate ...
and
wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...
attacks in
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
, including
those that happened in 2020.
See also
*
Environmental impact of war
of the environmental impact of war focuses on the modernization of warfare and its increasing effects on the environment. Scorched earth methods have been used for much of recorded history. However, the methods of modern warfare cause far gr ...
*
List of environmental issues
This is an alphabetical list of environmental issues, harmful aspects of human activity on the biophysical environment. They are loosely divided into causes, effects and mitigation, noting that effects are interconnected and can cause new effects. ...
*
1989 California medfly attack
In 1989, a sudden invasion of Mediterranean fruit flies (''Ceratitis capitata'', " medflies") appeared in California and began devastating crops. Scientists were puzzled and said that the sudden appearance of the insects "defies logic", and some s ...
References
Further reading
*Baechler, G. 1999. “Environmental Degradation and Violent Conflict: Hypotheses, Research Agendas, and Theory-building.” In Ecology, politics, and violent conflict, edited by Mohamed Suliman, 76–112. London: Zed Books.
*The Gilmore Commission. 2000. “Second Annual Report to the President and the Congress of the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction. II. Toward a National Strategy for Combating Terrorism.” Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 15 December 2000.
*Gleick, P.H. 1993. "Water and conflict." International Security Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 79–112 (Summer 1993).
*Gleick, P.H. 1998. The World's Water 1998-1999: The Biennial Report on Freshwater Resources. Covelo, CA: Island Press.
*Lietzmann, K.M. and G.D. Vest. 1999. Environment & Security in an International Context. Committee on the Challenges of Modern Society - Final Report, March 1999. Report No. 232.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
. 174 pp.
*Schwartz, D.M. 1998. “Environmental Terrorism: Analyzing the Concept” Journal of Peace Research. Vol. 35, No. 4, July 1998, pp. 483–496.
{{Terrorism topics
Environmental crime
Terrorism by method