NATO - SPS - Special cooperations

Security for Peace and Security

Defence and Environment Experts Group (DEEG)

In October 2009, the former Science for Peace and Security (SPS) Committee established the Defence and the Environment Experts Group (DEEG). The group’s function is to provide advice and recommendations to the SPS Advisor (under the ASG/ESC) with regard to the funding of SPS military/environmental proposals to further the long term objective of NATO to develop an environmental agenda to promote the identification, development and dissemination of cost-effective and innovative approaches to environmental and sustainability issues that affect military activities.

In addition to the above the DEEG will serve as a mentor to perspective study leaders to assist in developing and refining proposals under the SPS programme relevant to the military/environmental field. Meeting twice yearly, the DEEG examines and provides recommendations to the SPS advisor on project proposals from individuals or groups from NATO member and partner. The projects focus on areas such as environmental and sustainability of infrastructure and property issues arising from the management of defence estates, and the impact on soldiers of environmental threats (e.g. climatic, biological, etc). In practice, the emphasis has been on projects and initiatives that affect deployed operations, such as streamlining the environmental footprint of military compounds to maximise cost savings and tactical advantage, while minimising negative impacts on the environment.

Priority areas: - infrastructure and property - impact on soldiers - areas of deployment - domestic/ regional operations - logistics/ materiel

Ongoing projects:

• Effects of Environmental Conditions on Soldiers

This four-phase project is addressing emerging issues resulting from the changing conditions contemporary NATO operations are facing.

Modern deployments present many hazards to the life and health of soldiers. Disease and other non-battle injuries (DNBI), particularly from food-, water- or vector-borne infectious agents have historically accounted for the vast majority of casualties in almost all military operations. However, the current pattern of NATO deployments poses additional risks from potential exposure to toxic industrial chemicals; biological and radiological substances; climatic and meteorological conditions; and the actions of belligerents with their own agenda. Soldiers’ increasing concerns and stress about deployment-related exposures also divert needed focus from the military mission, and increase the requirements necessary (e.g., resources, personnel) to effectively address perceptions and/or allegations of perceived deployment exposures. Serious concerns about the potential negative effects of cumulative deployment-related exposures and stress have also recently been raised within the scientific, environmental and medical communities. This broad spectrum of environmental and industrial hazards, as well as the stress related to them, poses a significant and growing risk to the planning and conduct of NATO expeditionary and reactionary operations.

NATO takes the health and welfare of troops deployed under its aegis seriously, and is therefore constantly looking for ways to reinforce Force Health Protection measures. One such project supporting this focus is the Effects of Environmental Conditions on Soldiers project. This project is intended to: (a) Develop a practical, comprehensive approach that combines medical; chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN); and engineering doctrine and standards to a tactical best-practice guideline for NATO operations concerning risk assessment and risk communication; (b) Increase interoperability among sending nations; among the various disciplines that comprise Force Health Protection; and between Force Health Protection and Environmental Protection; and, (c) Reduce the gap between policy/doctrine level and tactical level/performance.

Project’s co-directors:
Chris Knowlton, Deputy Director Environmental Stewardship
Department of National Defence Canada
Tel: +1-613-995-5864
Email: chris.knowlton@forces.gc.ca

Annica Waleij, Senior Analyst
Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)
Tel: +46 90 10 68 54
Email: annica.waleij@foi.se

Timothy L. Schickedanz
U.S. Army Public Health Command
Timothy.Schickedanz@us.army.mil

• Sustainable operational military compounds – Towards a zero footprint compound

The goal of this environmental initiative is to explore the economical and tactical benefits of reducing the consumption and waste footprint of military compounds in an operational environment. This project will deliver products that will increase the knowledge base and communications amongst practitioners thereby encouraging the innovative integration of technologies that will contribute to the ultimate goal of a sustainable (“zero footprint”) military compound in a rational and holistic way.

The project proposal has not only been recommended by the Defence and Environment Expert Group (DEEG) but also by two working groups subordinated to the NATO Standardization Agency (NSA), the Military Enginnering Working Group (MILENG WG) of the Military Committee Land Standardization Board (MCLSB) and by the NATO Environmental Prtection Working Group (EPWG) of the Military Committee Joint Standardization Board (MCJSB).

It will consist of four three-day workshops which will take place between May 2012 – December 2014.

Project’s co-directors:
1) Major Lloyd Chubbs
CANOSCOM Operational Support Engineer Environment (OS Engr Envir)
101 Colonel By Drive,
Ottawa, On, K1A-0K2,
CANADA
Telephone: : 00-1-613-945-2017
Fax: 00-1-613-990-3719
E-mail: Lloyd.chubbs@forces.gc.ca

2) Ms. Naznoush Habashian (SWE)
Swedish Armed Forces HQ, Joint Environmental Dep.
Banrgatan 62
SE-107 85 Stockholm
SWEDEN
E-mail : naznoush.habashian@mil.se

Past activities

• Environmental Future Outlooks and their Military Implications

From 9 to 11 February 2010, Germany and The Netherlands organised in Sonthofen, Germany, a workshop on “Environmental Future Outlooks and their Military Implications”. The purpose of the workshop on “Environmental Future Outlooks and their Military Implications” was to improve the exchange of Environmental Future Outlook information between NATO and Partner countries and to provide a firm environmental basis for upcoming national and NATO Future Outlook studies. The objectives were as follows:

Establish which participating countries have environmental future outlook studies available, set up a repository of these documents and make them available to all participants;
establish a network of experts and organisations so that bilateral contacts can follow;
establish which sources have been used, then list and prioritize them;
compare the contents of the national studies and establish similarities and differences;
establish to what extent the national conclusions have been used in the “Multiple Futures Project”; and
determine whether follow-up activities, such as a short term project or a pilot study, are useful and desirable.

The scope of the workshop was limited to environmental developments and trends and their direct implications for strategic planning. The outcome of the workshop can be used as a basis for future defence planning, to evaluate existing long- term defence plans, influence concept and strategy development and improve training and threat analysis efforts.

The following countries and organisations were represented:

NATO: ACT, Office of the SecGen, Public Diplomacy Division, NATO School Oberammergau
EU: EUFOR
NATO countries: Albania, Belgium, Canada, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Turkey, United States of America
Partners: the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ¹, Ukraine.