5.7.5 Environmental Impact and Food Security
- 11 Mar 2024
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5.7.5 Environmental Impact and Food Security
- Updated on 11 Mar 2024
- 3 Minutes to read
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The climate crisis is a primary intensifier of food insecurity. Climate hazards will continue to increase the severity and frequency of disasters unless there is a major shift towards enhanced climate change mitigation, adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Humanitarian action (by definition) focuses on people affected by conflict and disasters, and their basic needs. Impacts on the environment – either related to the disaster itself or to the ensuing humanitarian activity – are often viewed as secondary. This can lead to environmental degradation and destruction, which can impede the long-term recovery of affected communities, many of whom depend on natural resources for their livelihoods.
Food security in a humanitarian context involves ensuring an adequate supply of food and meeting nutritional needs and cultural expectations, before and after a crisis. In this way, the environment, food security and livelihoods are co-dependent. If land is degraded or prone to natural hazards, less food is produced, and significant food shortages can occur. Interventions that focus on short-term benefits and neglect consideration of the environment can jeopardize long-term food security and livelihood opportunities and recovery.
To support mainstreaming of environmental concerns, the Coordinator should aim to:
- Where possible, advocate for food security activities to be in line with Sphere standards (see the Sphere thematic sheet on Environment, p. 5 and SEADS principle 4). He/she should work to:
- Promote responsible implementation of food security programmes (from purchasing, packaging, logistics and distribution), including by minimising waste, reusing and recycling (see example of a Joint FSS and WASH Sector Guidance Note on waste avoidance and management in emergency food distributions, from Cox’s Bazar, 2021).
- Promote protection, preservation and restoration of the natural environment from further degradation when delivering food assistance (e.g. consider the impact: of using wood as a cooking fuel on deforestation; of assistance on solid waste management; of providing foods that are water intensive in terms of cooking time on water scarcity).
- Promotion of and prioritisation to purchase locally produced items.
- Promote awareness on land/environment protection (to help prevent people from exploiting/destroying natural resources).
- Mainstream climate change adaptation by considering the impacts of climate change on water availability, agricultural production systems and practices, seeds varieties, yields, pest occurrence, market structures, irrigation systems, planting schedules etc. (See more on water scarcity in agriculture here).
- Where possible, advocate for FSC partners to consider the negative environmental impacts which assistance connected to food can have. See more here: EHA Connect and NEAT+ which can help partners design “greener” programmes (see details under resources below).
- If possible, identify an organisation with expertise in environmental issues as focal point, who can support the Coordinator, provide meeting inputs etc.
- Where possible, advocate for closer collaboration between in-country development and humanitarian actors on environmental and climate-related issues.
Examples: The FSC can provide tips to reduce the cooking time in order to reduce the quantity of woods as cooking fuel. The FSC can promote cooking gas or energy saving cook-stoves. The FSC with the Ministry of Forestry can promote reforestation through cash for work; other activities include land rehabilitation to prevent further land erosion, provision of safe removal of debris or recycling measures.
Support: Contact the global Food Security cluster Helpdesk.
Resources:
- See the Sphere thematic sheet on Environment (Sphere, 2019). For further guidance see EHA Connect, in particular Key environmental issues linked to food security, nutrition and livelihoods programming. EHA Connect is a portal, which includes information and resources on environmental issues linked to Food Security, Livelihoods and Nutrition.
- See also SEADS principle 4 on climate change and minimize environmental impacts, see the SEADS Standards (SEADS, 2022).
- For further resources and online training on environmental issues and emergencies see Environmental Emergencies Centre and the Environmental Emergencies Guidelines (UNEP/OCHA, 2017).
- Though not yet a UN endorsed tool, the Nexus Environmental Assessment Tool (NEAT+) can be useful for FSC partners to quickly identify issues of environmental concern before designing longer-term emergency or recovery interventions. Coordinators can discuss with partners or at ICCG level on the adaptation of this tool to the country specific needs.
- See more resources on food security and the environment on the FSC website here.
Additional Resources:
- See both FAO and WFP guidance on Safe Access to Fuel and Energy (SAFE)
- E-Learning Course on “Greening Humanitarian Aid” (DG ECHO). E-Learning Course on USAID Environmental Compliance and Agency Environmental Procedures (USAID).
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