The Kosovo Conflict: Consequences for the Environment and Human Settlements

Publisher: UNEP, UNCHS (Habitat)

Date: 1999

Topics: Assessment, Weapons, Waste, and Pollution

Countries: Kosovo

“Perhaps the most endangered natural resource in times of war is truth. This became very evident during the Kosovo Conflict When the Rambouillet accord failed and NATO air strikes started on 24 March 1999, alarming reports began to appear about the environmental damage caused by the bombing. Images of Pancevo and Novi Sad oil refineries on fire, toxic chemicals leaking into the River Danube, and bomb craters in protected areas were competing with those of tens of thousands of refugees fleeing their homes in Kosovo.”