Amidst the debris..

3. Contamination from weapon residues.
The ongoing conflict has seen the deployment of a wide range of weapons by all parties. The use
of massive quantities of munitions from North Africa, Europe, Russia and Asia, as well as DIY
weapons is likely to have left an environmental footprint. Based on historic peacetime and conflict
precedents, this research has highlighted a number of concerns over the direct and long-term
health effects from the residues of the intensive use of conventional munitions.
The sustained use of munitions in populated areas and attacks on arms storage areas may have
led to the dispersion of environmentally significant quantities of metals and energetic materials.
Further sources of contamination include military scrap metals and DIY munitions factories, both
of which may have created short and long term exposure risks to workers and those living nearby.
4. Collapse of environmental services.
Disruption to an already weak system of waste management provided by the Syrian government
has led to an accumulation of municipal waste and to an increase in uncontrolled dumping and
burning. Uncontrolled dumping and burning of waste reduces the likelihood that household,
medical and industrial wastes will be separated, creating immediate and long-term health and
environmental risks. Failure to appropriately manage municipal wastes has led to an increase in
communicable diseases.
The most pressing problem with waste collection emerged in Aleppo, and to a lesser extent, in and
around populated areas near Damascus, where there was total collapse of waste management.
More positively, and with UNDP support, cities such as Homs, have seen some recovery in waste
management services.
The purpose of this report has been to identify types of environmental damage in the Syrian
conflict that can have a direct impact on civilian health. As a desk study it has not sought
to quantify those civilian health risks but instead to demonstrate that the fate of Syria’s
environment during the conflict is inextricably linked to that of its human population. In doing
so it underscores the necessity of further steps to better integrate environmental protection
with the protection of civilians. !
62 PAX ! Amidst the debris...