ecocide
Killing the wild
Ecocide is the deliberate destruction of the natural environment, especially on a massive scale.
The term frames environmental devastation as a crime comparable to genocide—the killing of ecosystems rather than peoples.
Advocates push for ecocide to be recognized under international law: The oil spill was an act of ecocide.
The word appears in discussions of deforestation, industrial pollution, and climate policy.
Illegal harm to nature
- corporate liabilityCompany's legal financial exposure
- international lawRules governing relations between countries
- criminal prosecutionGovernment's legal action against accused
- legal personhoodCapacity to hold rights
environmental justice · accountability · reparations · war crime · corporate responsibility · environmental legislation · criminal negligence
Large-scale woodland elimination
- industrial pollutionManufacturing waste harming environment
- overfishingUnsustainable marine harvest
- oil spillsAccidental marine contamination
- toxic dumpingIllegal hazardous waste disposal
chemical contamination · nuclear contamination · plastic pollution · fracking · factory farming · coral bleaching · ocean acidification · clearcutting
Reduction in species variety
- species extinctionPermanent end of a lineage
- habitat destructionEliminating natural living spaces
- mass extinctionLarge-scale species elimination
- irreversible damageHarm that cannot be undone
Released greenhouse gases
- global warmingRising planetary temperatures
- greenhouse gasesEmissions that trap heat
- climate crisisDestabilizing atmospheric heating
- sea level riseIncreasing ocean surface height
melting glaciers · permafrost thaw · temperature rise · extreme weather · climate catastrophe · climate collapse
Removal of jungle trees
- Great Barrier ReefVast coral formation near Australia
- Deepwater HorizonFailed offshore drilling platform
- ChernobylSoviet nuclear disaster site
- Agent OrangeWartime defoliant chemical
Niger Delta · whale hunting · elephant poaching · dodo · passenger pigeon
environmental crime
Illegal harm to nature
- corporate liabilityCompany's legal financial exposure
- international lawRules governing relations between countries
- criminal prosecutionGovernment's legal action against accused
legal personhood · environmental justice · accountability · reparations · war crime · corporate responsibility · environmental legislation · criminal negligence
deforestation
Large-scale woodland elimination
- industrial pollutionManufacturing waste harming environment
- overfishingUnsustainable marine harvest
- oil spillsAccidental marine contamination
toxic dumping · chemical contamination · nuclear contamination · plastic pollution · fracking · factory farming · coral bleaching · ocean acidification · clearcutting · strip mining
biodiversity loss
Reduction in species variety
- species extinctionPermanent end of a lineage
- habitat destructionEliminating natural living spaces
- mass extinctionLarge-scale species elimination
carbon emissions
Released greenhouse gases
- global warmingRising planetary temperatures
- greenhouse gasesEmissions that trap heat
- climate crisisDestabilizing atmospheric heating
sea level rise · melting glaciers · permafrost thaw · temperature rise · extreme weather · climate catastrophe · climate collapse
Amazon deforestation
Removal of jungle trees
- Great Barrier ReefVast coral formation near Australia
- Deepwater HorizonFailed offshore drilling platform
- ChernobylSoviet nuclear disaster site
Agent Orange · Niger Delta · whale hunting · elephant poaching · dodo · passenger pigeon
- -cide wordsfratricide, matricide, patricide, infanticide, regicide
- war crimescrimes against humanity, Nuremberg, war crimes tribunals, prisoner abuse, war criminals
ecocideconservation
Preventing waste or loss
rewilding · reforestation · habitat restoration · regeneration · afforestation
ecocideenvironmental stewardship
Responsible management of nature
sustainability · biocentrism · land ethic · permaculture · sustainable development
suicide, ecology, pesticide, homicide, genocide, ecological, ecosystem, eco, ecologist