Ecocide is broadly understood as mass damage and destruction of nature, a root cause of the climate and ecological emergency that we now face.
While most human interaction with the environment creates some level of impact, ecocide refers only to the very worst harms, usually on a major industrial scale or impacting a huge area.
Scientific and on-the-ground knowledge of risks to nature, climate and people in specific contexts is extensive, and readily available to decision-makers in policy and industry. Legal recognition of ecocide will serve as an important incentive to ensure that this information is properly consulted, so that where there is a threat of severe and either widespread or long-term damage, the danger will be taken very seriously and appropriate safety protocols will be employed or, if need be, alternative approaches developed, in order to protect nature and avoid criminal liability.
Below are examples of industrial sectors and contexts where unlawful or reckless conduct could cause this level of harm.
Unsustainable practices like bottom trawling, factory fishing and open pen aquaculture wreak massive damage on marine wildlife ecosystems threatening the health, resilience and productivity of our ocean.
We extract from the water the equivalent of 45% of the biomass of the entire human species (177.8 Mt) each year.
Plastic production is set to triple in the next three decades while the planet and our bodies choke in plastics and the chemicals associated with them. These are killing the ocean micro and macro flora and fauna and end up as microplastics on the seabed floor if they have not made their way into the guts of creatures.
The biggest combined threat to biodiversity and climate on the planet is deforestation, especially of tropical rainforests which harbour the richest ecosystems and actively moderate the global climate
Mineral and metal extraction carried out without regard to good practice and mining principles, from goldmining to mountaintop removal, has a record of serious land and water contamination.
The toxic effects of unconventional oil and gas extraction are extensively documented – and cumulative.
The textile industry has huge polluting impact via wastewater from dyeing and tanning due to lack of regulation.
Soils, river systems and insect populations are all seriously affected by industrial agricultural chemicals and monocrop practices.
The Bhopal gas tragedy is considered the worst example of chemical disasters and the use of chemical weapons, such as Agent Orange, was the first context in which the word “ecocide” was recorded.
The climate and ecological emergency is the result of many years of these harmful industrial activities. Most of the risks have been known for decades by the companies choosing to continue these practices. The responsibility lies with decisions made at the top of industry, finance and government.
As citizens we can and must take responsibility for what we eat and buy, but ordinary citizens do not make those high level investment and policy decisions. Ordinary citizens cannot therefore be blamed for ecocide.