Contemporary wars and environmental consequences. A green criminological approach

Contemporary wars have produced serious consequences in terms of environmental harms, from the defoliants of Vietnam through the burning oil wells of Kuwait to the use of depleted uranium started in the Gulf War. This contribution proposes an examination of these phenomena from largely unexplored socio-criminological coordinates. First, I will outline some theoretical routes that will help in repositioning the idea of war in the context of contemporary social and ecological worlds. Second, I will retrace some theoretical proposals that will be useful in focusing on those aspects of contemporary wars that are most significant for a green criminological approach - a criminological perspective that studies environmental harms and crimes, together with the various forms of (in)justice concerning the human-environment relationship. Focusing on the use of depleted uranium in the context of contemporary wars, I will explore the so-called politics of denial employed by the states to obfuscate the harmful consequences arising from actions that can be defined as "state crimes". The dimensions of environmental victimization will then represent the further analytical element basic to the recognition of the criminological relevance of the war scenarios described. In the last part, I will suggest some route directions on the course to be taken, suitable for a criminology intending to adequately challenge the ecological dimensions of contemporary wars, re-directing the criminological "telescope" towards uncharted knowledge and intervention domains.