Environmental emergency

Following a disaster or conflict, an environmental emergency can occur when people's health and livelihoods are at risk due to the release of hazardous and noxious substances, or because of significant damage to the ecosystem. Examples include fires, oil spills, chemical accidents, toxic waste dumping and groundwater pollution.

The environmental risks can be acute and life-threatening. According to the International Disaster Database (EM-DAT), between 2003 and 2013, there were 380 industrial accidents reported, affecting 207 668 people and resulting in over US$22 million in losses. Climate change is having an unprecedented effect on the occurrence of natural disasters and the associated risk of environmental emergencies. With climate change already stretching the disaster relief system, future climate-related emergency events will generate increased and more costly demands for assistance.

Context

All disasters have some environmental impacts.

Some of these may be immediate and life-threatening – for example, when an earthquake damages an industrial facility, which in turn releases hazardous materials. In such cases these so-called 'secondary impacts' may cause as much damage as the initial causal factor.

For example, Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda that struck the Philippines in November 2013, caused massive destruction and had a huge human toll but also generated a spill of around 800,000 litres of heavy oil, when a power barge ran aground in Estancia, Iloilo province, at the height of the typhoon.

Disasters may also have longer-term impacts. For example, natural disasters may cause long-term waste management difficulties or ecosystem damage.