The JEU was established in 1994 as the United Nations mechanism to mobilize and coordinate emergency assistance to countries affected by environmental emergencies and natural disasters with significant environmental impact. Environmental emergencies – oil spills, pollution of rivers with toxic chemicals, explosions at factories – are associated with sensational media headlines and mass public protests. And for good reason. Their effects can be devastating and long-lasting, and it is the world’s responsibility to prevent them where possible and deal with them quickly when they occur. Until the 1990s, international response to industrial accidents dealt with them largely on an ad hoc and bilateral basis. But as the scale of industry has increased and public awareness of the damaging effects of industrial accidents has grown, so the volume of calls for a more coordinated response system has risen. Several large-scale accidents occurring during the 1980s and early 1990s confirmed feelings among the public and governments that there was an urgent need for change. Calls for an international mechanism to respond to environmental emergencies were finally answered in 1993, when United Nations Member States formally requested a new mechanism to deal specifically with the environmental aspects of disasters. With the establishment of the Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit – a partnership between the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) – many needs from both requesting and providing countries were met.
The first meeting of the Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies was convened jointly by the UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in Geneva from 16 to 17 January 1995, in accordance with the recommendations of the UNEP Governmental Advisory Meeting of November 1993. The meeting was attended by delegations from Canada, The People’s Republic of China, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Indonesia, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Romania, the Russian Federation, Senegal, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The Director of DHA-Geneva, Martin Griffiths, noted that until the formation of the Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit, there was neither sufficient expertise nor administrative mechanism to respond to the environmental aspects of emergencies. The AGEE is playing an important role in working to improve the international response system. This includes anchoring emergency response into a broader framework and developing international Guidelines.
An incendiary combination of illegal burning to clear forest lands, together with a rainy season delayed by El Niño: the result was widespread, devastating forest fires that threatened not only the unique biodiversity of Indonesia, but also the air quality of Indonesia and surrounding countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines and Thailand. Between September and November 1997, an estimated two million hectares of forest burned. Fires in deep peat deposits released noxious carbon fumes and thick, choking smoke wreathed cities in the region. On 27 September, at the request of the United Nations Resident Coordinator, a United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) mission was dispatched to Indonesia. The mission, composed of UNDAC and Joint Environment Unit staff and seconded experts, remained in Indonesia from September to November 1997. Divided into four teams, the mission carried out independent field assessments in the areas most affected by the fires. Based on these assessments, the UNDAC team was able to assist the Indonesian Government to prioritize emergency relief needs and organize international help. As a result, assistance was mobilized and coordinated from 19 countries, international organizations, as well as private companies and numerous NGOs. Twelve countries and regions dispatched fire fighters, fire-fighting equipment and water-bombing planes.
The Izmit Province is one of the most densely populated and industrialized areas of Turkey. Industrial facilities lie interspersed with residential areas, while nearby agricultural lands and lakes provide green vegetables and drinking water to the inhabitants. When an earthquake struck northwest Turkey on 17 August 1999, the epicentre fell in the Sea of Marmara, just off Izmit. Over 17,000 people died in the earthquake and nearly 50,000 were injured. The potential for secondary environmental damage was clear, given the proximity of industrial facilities to residential areas, agricultural land, drinking water supplies and fishing grounds. The Joint Environment Unit responded immediately in several ways. The Unit contacted its network of official National Focal Points for Environmental Emergencies in potential donor countries as well as specialist fire-fighting chemical additives and foam. A large fire was
Enter story info hereOn 30 January 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the Aurul SA Baia Mare Company, a major spill of cyanide-rich tailings waste was released into the river system near Baia Mare in north west Romania. The contaminant travelled via tributaries into the river Somes, Tisza and finally into the Danube before reaching the Black Sea. Following requests from the Governments of Hungary, Romania and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), and consultations with European Environment Commissioner, OCHA and UNEP, announced on 18 February 2000, that a team of international experts would be sent to the affected area to carry out a scientific analysis of the environmental damage caused by the spill. The mission was a joint venture of UNEP and OCHA, organised by the JEU, and headed by the Director of UNEP’s Regional Office for Europe. Its terms of reference included an independent, scientific description of the spill, the situation and events causing it, the collection and review of data related to the spill and its environmental implications, and the preparation of recommendations for future action and prevention.
In 2002-2003 the JEU has aimed to ensure a more integrated approach to disaster management by influencing the incorporation of environmental considerations in OCHA’s overall response to natural disasters. To support this process, the Section has increasingly turned to United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) teams to respond to environmental or technological disasters, and has successfully influenced the involvement of environmental experts on UNDAC teams deployed to natural disaster to ensure full integration of the environmental component into OCHA’s response to natural disasters.
The Environmental Emergencies Partnership was launched by OCHA and UNEP at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, in 2002. The Partnership was initiated to enhance environmental emergency management practices in developing countries, and countries with economies in transition, by ‘bridging gaps’ between phases of the disaster management cycle (prevention, preparedness and response) and between disaster management stakeholders. At the fifth meeting of the Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies, in May 2003, stakeholders and potential partners identified needs for strengthening capacity at national, regional and international levels for defining anticipated outcomes of the Partnership in the coming years. The Partnership obtained substantial support from those present, and provided more clarity on the scope and modalities for implementation. Among the conclusions and recommendations of the meeting was a call for the Partnership to serve as platform for sharing information and knowledge among key stakeholders including governments, industries, NGOs and academia. The meeting also encouraged partners and stakeholders to enhance existing measures to build environmental emergency management capacities at local and national levels. The Partnership was founded by the UNEP Disaster Management Branch, UNEP Division of Technology, Industry and Economics, and the Joint Unit, which provides a Secretariat to the Partnership and was encouraged to take a leadership role in its development.
In late 2002, the Joint Unit saw its role extend to addressing environmental issues in connection with awareness raising and the provision of guidance to UN organizations in the planning and preparedness phase leading up to the conflict, regarding the possible threat of chemical and biological weapons during the conflict in Iraq. The Joint Unit was also called upon to provide concrete guidance to national governments to ensure appropriate levels of preparedness to face the environmental threats of war, in particular the possibility of a major oil spill in the Persian Gulf, as was seen during the 1991 Gulf War. Together with UNEP’s Post Conflict Assessment Unit, the Joint Unit contributed to UNEP’s Desk Study on the potential environmental impacts in Iraq that is expected to be followed up by a number of onsite assessments in post war Iraq later in 2003.
The Joint Unit, in partnership with the Swedish Rescue Services Agency, planned, developed and delivered the first PfP International Environmental Disaster Course. The objective of the course was to bring together national experts and to train them to operate and manage environmental emergencies of an international dimension, and to be aware of the unique elements of an international response. The course was hosted by SRSA at their training facility in Rosersberg, Sweden, and attended by some 30 participants from 15 countries. The pilot course was very well received by those who attended, with suggestions on content and delivery provided through evaluations, which were used to revise and improve the course.
The Joint Unit, in close cooperation with UNEP’s Disaster Management Branch, conducted an assessment mission to Pakistan, in connection with a large-scale oil spill in the Port of Karachi. The mission assessed environmental impacts of the disaster and provided direct technical guidance to the national authorities and responders. Recommendations were made to the Pakistani authorities on short, mid- and long-term actions and a restoration framework was proposed to contribute to a healthy, productive, and biologically diverse ecosystem.
In July 2004, eight people were killed and 13 seriously injured in a partial collapse of artisanal workings at the Shinkolobwe mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Joint Unit organized and carried out a multi-disciplinary assessment of the partial collapse of the uranium. Although the mine was officially closed, thousands of artisanal miners continued to dig at Shinkolobwe, and concerns were raised about potential environmental contamination, exposure to radiation and human health effects. The mission, led by the Joint Unit, was organized in close collaboration with OCHA country office and the UN mission in the DRC (MONUC) and included experts on mining, environment, radiological contamination (from the International Atomic Energy Agency) and an environmental health expert (WHO). The current state of the mine, the causes of its partial collapse, environmental impacts, including contamination by heavy metals, humanitarian and health concerns linked to mining activities and exposure to ionizing radiation were assessed. Samples of water, soil and dust were analyzed in Switzerland. The assessment identified the short, medium and long-term measures to be taken by the DRC Government and international organizations, to mitigate anarchistic exploitation and further collapse at Shinkolobwe mining site.
In July 2004, eight people were killed and 13 seriously injured in a partial collapse of artisanal workings at the Shinkolobwe mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Joint Unit organized and carried out a multi-disciplinary assessment of the partial collapse of the uranium. Although the mine was officially closed, thousands of artisanal miners continued to dig at Shinkolobwe, and concerns were raised about potential environmental contamination, exposure to radiation and human health effects. The mission, led by the Joint Unit, was organized in close collaboration with OCHA country office and the UN mission in the DRC (MONUC) and included experts on mining, environment, radiological contamination (from the International Atomic Energy Agency) and an environmental health expert (WHO). The current state of the mine, the causes of its partial collapse, environmental impacts, including contamination by heavy metals, humanitarian and health concerns linked to mining activities and exposure to ionizing radiation were assessed. Samples of water, soil and dust were analyzed in Switzerland. The assessment identified the short, medium and long-term measures to be taken by the DRC Government and international organizations, to mitigate anarchistic exploitation and further collapse at Shinkolobwe mining site.
Four UNDAC teams were deployed in response to the devastating hurricanes Jeanne and Ivan, in Jamaica, Grenada, Haiti and Dominican Republic. The Joint Unit in collaboration with UNDAC environmental experts assessed the environmental issues, and prepared a report including recommendations to national authorities and the international community. The report highlighted, in particular, environmental impacts on vegetation, underground water and soil and assessed immediate and longer-term storm-risks such as floods and landslides.
Long-term ethnic conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan escalated in 2002/03 into open warfare, forcing an estimated 1.6 million people to flee their homes and creating a humanitarian emergency. While many people fled to neighbouring Chad, the majority of the internally displaced people, known as ‘IDPs’, were housed in temporary camps within Darfur, where they remained vulnerable to attack and put pressure on already scarce environmental resources. The Joint Unit conducted, along with partners, a rapid assessment of environmental conditions in three Darfur camps for people internally displaced by conflict. The assessment identified serious emerging environmental problems in the camps, including water and waste management issues. The assessment also concluded that many of the identified problems could be addressed through the application of existing tools and knowledge. Based on these findings, the Joint Unit intends to address these issues in a number of IDPs camps to reduce the environmental risks and improve human health and welfare. The four-month-project, started in June 2005, adapted existing guidance material as required for use in Darfur IDPs camps, identify camps and assess key environmental issues, and facilitate the implementation of action plans. The project was led by the Joint Unit in partnership with UN Volunteers (UNV) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and in close collaboration with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the OCHA Internal Displacement Division (OCHA-IDD).
In the aftermath of the Tsunami disaster, the Joint Unit mobilized and supported the environmental experts in UNDAC teams in Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Indonesia. The experts carried out rapid environmental assessments to identify acute environmental issues with immediate impacts on human welfare and response efforts. The assessments were conducted in some of the most affected areas. The major environmental and human health concerns included waste management, sanitation and sew age issues. The enormous amounts of waste and debris resulting from the Tsunami needed to be managed in an environmental and sustainable manner. As a result, the identification of proper landfills, the clearing, sorting and recycling of the debris were identified as priority activities. In Sri Lanka and Indonesia, UNDAC environmental experts, supported by the Joint Unit, enabled the rapid implementation of waste management pilot projects to reduce the waste and debris through recycling (a significant proportion of damaged building material was recycled and reused for reconstruction). The experts also advised the local authorities on sustainable waste management practices and provided assistance with regard to requirements and identification of proper landfills for waste disposal. The rapid environmental assessments also found that sanitation and sewage systems were severely damaged causing health risks, in particular in resettlements camps where people were provided emergency shelter. As a result, the Joint Unit, along with other partners, developed guidance material to reduce environmental risks in settlements for displaced people in Sri Lanka. The guide, which identified critical environmental considerations in transitional shelter site selection, construction, management and decommissioning, was widely disseminated to Government authorities and Non-Governmental Organizations involved in transitional shelter management.
In the aftermath of the Tsunami disaster, the Joint Unit mobilized and supported the environmental experts in UNDAC teams in Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Indonesia. The experts carried out rapid environmental assessments to identify acute environmental issues with immediate impacts on human welfare and response efforts. The assessments were conducted in some of the most affected areas. The major environmental and human health concerns included waste management, sanitation and sew age issues. The enormous amounts of waste and debris resulting from the Tsunami needed to be managed in an environmental and sustainable manner. As a result, the identification of proper landfills, the clearing, sorting and recycling of the debris were identified as priority activities. In Sri Lanka and Indonesia, UNDAC environmental experts, supported by the Joint Unit, enabled the rapid implementation of waste management pilot projects to reduce the waste and debris through recycling (a significant proportion of damaged building material was recycled and reused for reconstruction). The experts also advised the local authorities on sustainable waste management practices and provided assistance with regard to requirements and identification of proper landfills for waste disposal. The rapid environmental assessments also found that sanitation and sewage systems were severely damaged causing health risks, in particular in resettlements camps where people were provided emergency shelter. As a result, the Joint Unit, along with other partners, developed guidance material to reduce environmental risks in settlements for displaced people in Sri Lanka. The guide, which identified critical environmental considerations in transitional shelter site selection, construction, management and decommissioning, was widely disseminated to Government authorities and Non-Governmental Organizations involved in transitional shelter management.
The Joint Unit mobilized two environmental experts, from the Netherlands, that were deployed to Guyana to support the UNDAC team following severe floods and a potential collapse of the East Demerara Water Conservancy dam. The results of the safety/stability assessment, as well as recommendations were presented to the Government. In addition, the experts developed, in collaboration with the relevant national authorities and partner agencies, a plan of action for short, medium and long-term actions to be taken to prevent the collapse of the dam. Following this first assessment mission, the Government of the Netherlands redeployed experts to assist in the implementation of the plan of action. In particular, the emergency rehabilitation of the dam and the repair of the drainage outlets have been started in April 2005 and will continue until July 2005.
The huge waves that battered northern Somalia after the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2004 prompted renewed speculation on the presence of toxic waste. Unconfirmed media reports and anecdotal information suggested that the waves had stirred up hundreds of barrels of toxic waste dumped illegally in the war-racked country during the early 1990s. Similar rumours had been circulated as far back as the late 1980s and the United Nations had deployed fact-finding missions in 1992 and 1997, neither of which found any evidence of toxic waste dumping. As the security situation did not allow a third field investigation, the Joint Environment Unit made best use of existing government and humanitarian networks in the country. A questionnaire sent to the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and other Somali partners gave no indication of any sites where waste had been dumped or washed up on the coast. It was therefore impossible to launch a field assessment. However, the rumours impeded export of cattle and fish, exacerbating an already very precarious situation for the Somali people.
In July and August 2005, forest fires burned 30,000 hectares of land in the Junin Department of Peru and affected an estimated 600 people. In response, the Joint Environment Unit facilitated, in cooperation with the Global Fire Monitoring Centre (GFMC), the deployment of an expert to undertake a fire assessment and provide recommendations for abatement. The fire expert – a consultant to UNDP and member of the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction’s Regional South America Wildland Fire Network – identified considerable damage to the local environment. While there was no need for further international environmental assistance, recommendations were made to increase the national response preparedness activities. The experiences from Peru were then used as an input into the ‘Strategy for Cooperation in Fire Management in South America’. This strategy, developed jointly by GFMC and the Food and Agriculture Organization, addresses the prevention, preparedness and suppression of wildfires in the region through bilateral and regional agreements.
On 8 October 2005, an earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale struck northern Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. The earthquake and aftershocks caused thousands of deaths and the destruction of infrastructure including medical facilities, government buildings and schools. Casualty numbers: more than 73,000 dead and almost 70,000 people injured. An estimated 3.3 million people were left homeless. The JEU ensured that the UNDAC team, sent at the request of the Government of Pakistan, included two UNDAC-trained environmental generalists who conducted a rapid environmental assessment (REA) and identified acute environmental issues, including waste management problems, slope instability, and threats due to deforestation. Second, to address the issues found through the REA, the JEU deployed four experts (waste management and health care) to Pakistan to provide practical advice, solutions and technical support. The experts developed waste management and health care waste guidelines in cooperation with WHO and the JEU. These guidelines were widely distributed together with “Do’s and don’ts for waste management” documents and “Do’s and Don’ts for Health Care Waste”. The experts also provided information on the improvement of solid waste collection and disposal to relevant cluster-lead agencies (UNICEF, WHO) and local authorities. Experts in slope stabilization and forestry also provided recommendations to the authorities. Several lessons were learned. Most importantly, overall response timing and sequencing was effective. The JEU ensured that within days of issues being identified through the REA, additional experts were deployed to conduct further assessments, and, most importantly, to provide practical advice and solutions.
Following the seventh AGEE meeting held in Rosersberg, Sweden, it was agreed that while the existing international system for environmental emergency response was effective in many ways, it lacked coordination, with gaps in areas of response and preparedness, including lack of an official notification system. It was therefore decided to introduce a new initiative aimed at improving the existing system for international environmental emergency response and preparedness. This became known as the Rosersberg Initiative. The aim is to make priority recommendations and enable members to implement them in a participatory manner. Action were to be taken three thematic areas: 1.1. Awareness raising, engagement, training and capacity building: aiming to increase the awareness of stakeholders and encourage their engagement in environmental emergency preparedness and response through increased communication and advocacy activities 2.2. Improving the international legal system in environmental emergencies: commissioning a baseline study of existing international systems governing environmental emergencies 3.3. Improving national structure and mechanisms: helping countries to improve their operational structures and mechanisms to ensure a better, more coordinated and more effective response in case of disasters.
At the 2013 AGEE, the JEU presented a proposal on the transition of AGEE to an Environmental Emergencies Forum (EEF), an open platform organized as a conference to raise awareness, advocate for action and create partnerships across stakeholder groups. The current Steering Committee was to be replaced by a smaller Strategic Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies (SAGEE). The first Environmental Emergencies Forum (EEF) was organized by the JEU in June 2015. The Forum was held in Oslo, Norway and hosted by the Government of Norway with the support of the Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection. More than 110 participants from 35 countries, including representatives from 72 organisations were present. Participants included government representatives, UN agencies and programmes, regional organisations, academia and research facilities, private-sector and industry groups, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), who gathered to share experiences, promote partnerships, and agree on priority areas of focus for international cooperation. The 2015 Forum explored the nexus of environmental risk, humanitarian crisis and climate change, identifying ways to better prepare for and respond to environmental emergencies and to contribute to global policy discussions. The format allowed for networking opportunities and sharing of knowledge.
Three organizations from around the world, who have demonstrated outstanding efforts to confront environmental emergencies, were honoured as recipients of the fourth Green Star Awards at the occasion of the 2015 EEF in June 2015. All these organizations have demonstrated remarkable achievements in raising awareness, building capacity and effectively responding to environmental emergencies. The 2015 Green Star Awardees were: - Preparedness category: The Malagasy mining and refining project Ambatovy for spearheading the decommissioning of severely corroded ammonia tanks in 2014, abandoned in a densely populated area for almost 30 years, thus reducing risk and avoiding a potential chemical emergency - Response category: The French Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution (Cedre) was recognized for its invaluable expertise and support in the aftermath of coastal and marine oil spills in the Philippines and in Bangladesh in 2013 and 2014. - Environment and Humanitarian Action category: The Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC), USA, won the award for putting cooking fuel on the humanitarian agenda through its Safe Access to Fuel and Energy Initiative (SAFE). In displacement settings, food rations typically must be cooked in order to be eaten, but cooking fuel is rarely provided.
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