Archive Note

This publication is part of GRID-Arendal’s archive. Some information reflects the political context, environmental assessment methods and knowledge available at the time of publication in 1999. It is retained for historical and reference value.

Overview

Published in October 1999 by UNEP and UNCHS (Habitat), The Kosovo Conflict: Consequences for the Environment and Human Settlements presents the findings of the Joint UNEP/UNCHS Balkans Task Force, established while the Kosovo conflict was still ongoing. The Task Force was created in response to growing concern about the environmental and human settlement consequences of the conflict, alongside the urgent humanitarian crisis.

The report examines the effects of air strikes on industrial sites, possible pollution of the Danube River, damage to protected areas, impacts on human settlements in Kosovo, and concerns related to the possible use of depleted uranium. It draws on independent scientific missions, field visits, laboratory analysis, desk assessment and stakeholder engagement.

Its central conclusion was measured and evidence-based. The conflict had not caused an environmental catastrophe across the Balkans as a whole, but serious pollution was identified at specific sites, including Pančevo, Kragujevac, Novi Sad and Bor. These “hot spots” required urgent action to protect human health and prevent further environmental damage.

What You’ll Find

The publication includes:

• A chronology of the Kosovo conflict, from the start of NATO air operations in March 1999 to the suspension of the campaign in June 1999.
• Background on environmental and human settlement conditions in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia before the conflict.
• Findings from technical missions to industrial sites, the Danube River, protected areas and Kosovo.
• Assessment of environmental hot spots linked to chemical releases, oil fires, PCB contamination, mercury, sulphur dioxide emissions and risks to drinking water.
• Discussion of refugee-related pressures on sanitation, water services and settlements.
• Analysis of institutional and property-related challenges affecting the return of displaced people.
• Recommendations for environmental “first aid” as part of humanitarian assistance and post-conflict recovery.

The report also contains maps, site photographs, sampling summaries and visual documentation of affected industrial facilities, river systems and protected areas.

Why It Matters

This publication is an important early example of post-conflict environmental assessment. It shows how environmental risks, public health, housing, infrastructure, displacement and governance are closely connected in the aftermath of war.

The report helped establish the value of rapid, independent and science-based environmental assessment in crisis settings. It also underlined a principle that remains relevant today, that humanitarian response and reconstruction should take environmental risks into account from the start.

For GRID-Arendal’s archive, the publication documents a formative moment in the use of environmental information, maps and field-based evidence to support international understanding, recovery planning and more transparent decision-making in post-conflict contexts.