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Devastating humanitarian disasters such as the 12 May earthquake that hit China can lead to secondary environmental impacts that pose risks for human life and health in the immediate term, and livelihoods and ecosystems in the longer term.
In China, the combination of the severity of the earthquake, high population density, and high levels of industrialization have led to a challenging environmental emergency situation with a wide range of reported impacts that will likely affect China in the short, medium and longer term.
Several toxic chemical spills have been reported, the structural integrity of several dozen dams has been called into question, and massive landslides have blocked rivers, causing "quake lakes" that, should they overflow, threaten hundreds of thousands of people.
UNEP has since early June strengthened its office in Beijing with additional staff having specific knowledge in post-disaster assessments, and more specifically in the fields of domestic, industrial and hazardous waste management, including asbestos and hazardous healthcare waste. This has enabled UNEP to provide environmental expertise both to the United Nations Country Team and to the relevant Chinese authorities. |
