Environmental Justice for Ukraine and Ecocide Deterrence (cepa.org)

A panel of international experts drafted a definition of the crime of ecocide in 2021 as “unlawful or wanton acts committed with the knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts.” Yet, despite numerous efforts at both national and international levels, including by the Ecocide Law Alliance, most civil-law states lack a crime of ecocide in their criminal codes. While its criminalization would be complex and politically contentious even in peacetime, armed conflict creates an urgent need to establish legal frameworks for adjudication and accountability for severe environmental harm. Ukraine has faced significant challenges investigating and prosecuting ecocide since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, and there is little room for delay. Faced with continuous environmental destruction, Kyiv had no choice but to move forward with investigations and charges as the war continued. Although efforts to adjudicate ecocide are underway, including the 2023 destruction of the Kakhovka dam, attacks on the Sumy ammonia plant, and an attempt to destroy a nuclear facility in Kharkiv, there are legal and investigative constraints that require robust efforts from the investigative, prosecutorial, and judicial communities. In the absence of...