Climate Damage Caused by Russia’s War in Ukraine

by the Initiative on GHG Accounting of War

Russia’s war in Ukraine has caused extensive devastation, including the destruction or damage of homes, schools, hospitals, and other critical public facilities, leaving citizens without essential resources such as water, electricity, and healthcare. The war has also led to significant environmental damage with the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in June 2023 as one of the most devastating events for both people and nature.

This war impacts the global climate due to the release of significant amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases (GHG) into the atmosphere. This third interim assessment concludes that GHG emissions, attributable to 18 months or 555 days of the war, total to 150 million tCO2e. This is more than the annual GHG emissions from a highly industrialized country like Belgium.

Authors believe that the Russian Federation should be held accountable for these emissions and the resulting damage to the global climate. Russia should be held accountable because, without its act of aggression, these greenhouse gas emissions would not have happened. These damages could be included in the Registry of Damage for Ukraine under the auspices of the Council of Europe.

Ukraine can use the compensation to mitigate the climate damage Russia has caused by reversing most of the war emissions to the benefit of the world community. The most obvious way to undo the damage is to channel funds to the reafforestation of destroyed forests and other nature-based solutions that remove emissions from the atmosphere. Future (re)construction emissions, in particular those resulting from the usage of cement and steel, can be avoided by 30% to even 50% through introducing right incentives for a low-carbon reconstruction. Better insulation of buildings and an accelerated roll-out of renewable energy is a third way to undo the damage.