ABSTRACT
Countries emerging from conflict face myriad complex challenges, including restoring peace and security, rebuilding infrastructure and the economy, and providing for the basic needs of their people. The natural environment is often harshly affected during conflicts, and restoring and rehabilitating ecosystems to ensure long-term sustainability is an additional challenge that post-conflict societies must address. In many instances, contamination of soil and groundwater by chemicals and other substances; dispersion of hazardous waste from fires, looting, bombings, and oil spills; and accumulation of municipal waste and hazardous health-care waste pose significant risks to human health and the environment and urgently require remediation.
