Recent Indo-Pak war threatens ecosystem and sustainable development

The environment is a unique living requirement for all creatures. Natural resources, human capital and economic growth are highly interdependent in fostering any particular community or society, where environmental issues directly play a positive role in any situation (Zhang et al., 2021). Moreover, effective and appropriate environmental management is the art of today's sustainable development approach, which is the aftermath of a natural cycle comprising agricultural, industrial and social development (O'Neill, 2017). Recent studies show that the environment is gradually degrading and becoming a threat to human beings. To address environmental degradation—especially of the earth's agricultural land—the United Nations General Assembly declared the "Sustainable Development Goals" in 2015 (Pacheco, Fernandes, Junior, Valera, & Pissarra, 2018). Among the various causes of global ecosystem destruction, war is a primary offender, degrading entire ecosystems and acting as a misfeasor of sustainable development in specific areas. Modern warfare and military operations pose a direct threat to the ecosystem and biosphere (Lawrence, Stemberger, Zolderdo, Struthers, & Cooke, 2015). The Vietnam War, the Gulf War of 1991, conflicts in Yemen and Syria, and the recent Indo-Pak War all stand as examples of environmental devastation and setbacks to sustainable development.

The global environmental guardian, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), founded in June 1972, is the only global platform that informs, guides, and accelerates environmental actions worldwide. It warns that the Indo-Pak War of 2025 is not only destroying the environmental landscape in the Kashmir region but also jeopardising food production in both India and Pakistan. UNEP has also expressed concern about the post-ceasefire atmosphere, particularly infrastructure damage, migration, and long-term ecological harm.

India's Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) was the first social network to express deep concern over the severe ecological consequences of the conflict, such as ecosystem damage, population migration, and long-term environmental degradation. They highlighted that this is not a mere regional conflict but one where the ecosystem is being incinerated through intense gunfire.

Pakistan's Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), part of its Agenda 21 initiative, has attempted to draw global attention by voicing environmental concerns, including the water crisis over the Indus Basin. They have also raised alarm about potential climate disasters, food shortages, and biodiversity loss.

The human toll of the 2025 Indo-Pak War is countable. However, we must also consider the uncountable species—animals and non-human life forms that have suffered immensely due to gunfire and missile strikes across the war zones. The battlefield has consumed agricultural lands, forests, and ponds—each a vital part of the ecological balance. The Vietnam War serves as a dire example of environmental degradation and its long-term impacts on air, water, and soil. Even the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (signed in 1960) has become a serious dilemma for Pakistan's agriculture and irrigation systems dependent on the Indus channels.

Additionally, this conflict threatens all five Environmental Quality Index (EQI) domains—namely air, water, land, built environment, and socio-demographic factors—while simultaneously affecting the three core Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) dimensions: economic, social, and environmental.

Finally, the full extent of the ecosystem damage is yet to be calculated or fully measured. However, social analytics have identified three immediate and major environmental disruptions resulting from the Indo-Pak War of 2025:

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