Transformation of Soil and Water Properties in Agricultural Lands by Military Activity: Perspectives and Guiding Principles for the Reconstruction of War-Ravaged Agricultural Lands and Waters
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66659/pd.2026.004Keywords:
chemical contamination, ecosystem health, farmer livelihoods, food and nu-trition security, landmines, soil degradation, war and conflict, war-ravaged agricultural lands, water infrastructure, water pollution.Abstract
War and conflict contaminate and destroy freshwater and soil resources essential to the production of food and nutrition security, ecosystem health and resilience, farmer livelihoods, and community and national economic wellbeing. The legacies of armed conflict and war on agricultural landscapes are deforestation, degradation of soil physical, chemical and biological properties, geomorphologic transformations, water pollution and destruction of water infrastructure. Farmers and foresters of once productive and profitable agricultural landscapes degraded by military activities are hard-pressed to feed themselves, local and national populations, and have little surplus food and agricultural products for export in support of national economies. Farmers are the foundation of food and nutritional production essential for human development, health and life. It is necessary and urgent that war-ravaged agricultural landscapes be assessed for natural resource damage and contamination, that research and implementation of systems approaches that remediate and reconnect critical soil-water-biological relationships be accelerated, and that coherent and systematic policies and sustained investments at local, regional and national levels be put in place. The reconstruction of these landscapes enable farmers to do what they do best, grow food and re-establish their livelihoods and agricultural value chains necessary for food and nutrition security. Twelve overarching Guiding Principles for Reconstruction of War-ravaged Agricultural Lands and Waters are proposed to guide policy, planning and implementation that enable the co-production of food and nutrition security, livelihoods, and natural resource reclamation and resilience.
References
1. Olson, KR, Morton, LW. Long-term fate of Agent Orange and dioxin TCDD contami-nated soils and sediments in Vietnam Hotspots. Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2019; 9: 1-34. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2019.91001
2. Meaza, H, Ghebreyohannes, T, Nyssen, J, Tesfamariam, Z, Demissie, B, Poesen, J. Gerehiwot, M, Weldmichel, T.G., Deckers, S, Gidey, DG, Vanmaercke, M. Managing the environmental impacts of war: what can be learned from conflict-vulnerable communities. Science of the Total Environment. 2024; 927171974. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iswcr.2024.11.004
3. Kemmerling, B, Schetter, C, Wirkus, L. The logics of war and food (in)security. Glob-al Food Security. 2022; 33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2022.100634
4. Hatfield, JL, Racetter, KA, Birge, HE, Wecker, D J, Wyatt, BM, Wacha, KM, Lal, R. Soil health and hydrological process: Keys to sustainable agriculture. Advances in Agronomy. 2026.
5. Richards, P. The history and future of African Ricer: Food security and survival in a West African war zone. Afrika Spectrum 2006; 41:1:7-93.
6. Warsame, A, Isse, YA, Sh Abdi, AM. Production status, breeding priorities and ge-netic resources of cowpea in post-civil war Somalia. Food and Energy Security. 2026; 15:e70181 https://doi.org/10.1002/fes3.70181
7. Filho, W, Fedoruk, M, Eustachio, JHPP, Splodytel, A., Smaliychuk, A., Szynkowska, Jozwik, M I. The environment as the first victim: the impacts of the war on the preser-vation areas in Ukraine. Journal of Environmental Management. 2024; 364. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121399
8. Olson, KR, Morton, LW. Why were the soil tunnels of Cu Chi and Iron Triangle in Vi-etnam so resilient? Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2017; 7:34-51. http://file.scirp.org/pdf/OJSS_2017020911121143.pdf
9. Olson, KR, Speidel, DR. Review and analysis: Successful use of soil tunnels in Medi-eval and modern warfare and smuggling. Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2020; 10:194-215. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2020.105010
10. Pereira, P, Basic, F, Bogunovic, I, Barcelo, D. Russian-Ukrainian war impacts the to-tal environment. Science of the Total Environment. 2022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.114322
11. Williams, OH, Rintoul-Hynes, NLJ . Legacy of war: Pedogenesis divergence and heavy metal contamination on the WW front line a century after battle. Eur J Soil Sci. 2022; 73:e13297 https://doi:.org/10:1111/3jss.13297
12. Morton, LW, Culbertson, C. Persistence of dioxin TCDD in Southern Vietnam soil and water environments and maternal exposure pathways with potential conse-quences on congenital heart disease prevalence in Vietnam. Open Journal of Soil Science. 2022; 12:119-150. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2022.124005
13. Speidel, D. R. Personal communication. U.S. Army Iraq, Mosul and Balad, Iraq; Foreign Agricultural Service, Baqubah and Mahmudiyah, Iraq; Foreign Agricultural Service, Washington DC USA. March 7, 2026.
14. Stevens, ST. A legend of the destruction of Carthage. Classical Philology. 1988;32(1):39-41. https://doi:101086/367078
15. Moldenke, HN, Moldenke, AL. Plants of the Bible. Chronica Botanica Co, Waltham, Mass; Dover Publications, Mineola, NY. 1952, reprint 1986.
16. Bausinger, T, Bonnaire, E, Preuss, J. Exposure assessment of a burning ground for chemical ammunition on the Great War battlefields of Verdun. Sci. Total Environ. 2007; 382, 259–271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2007.04.029
17. Olson, KR, and Cihacek, L. Agent Blue spraying in the Mekong Delta during the Vi-etnam War: Fate of the arsenic based herbicide weapon used to destroy rice crop and mangrove forests. Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2022; 12:253-294. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2022.127012
18. Olson, KR. Agent Blue: A secret military and environmental chemical weapon used for food denial in South Vietnam during the Vietnam Civil War (1962-1965). Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2023. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2023.133007
19. Speidel, DR, Olson, KR. Review and Analysis: Evaluation of the impacts and conse-quences of using agricultural herbicides as military chemical weapons in second In-dochina War. Open Journal of Soil Sci. 2024; 14: 471-498. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2024.148025
20. White, P. War and food security in Eeritrea and Ethiopia, 1998-2000. Disasters 2005; 29(51): s92−s113. Overseas Development Institute, Published by Blackwell Publishing, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
21. Manoiu, VM, Costache, MS, Nica, MA. The impact of the Russia-Ukraine War on wa-ter resources and infrastructure of Ukraine - A comprehensive review. MDPI. 2025; 1-30.
22. Shebanin, V, Gamayunova, V, Karpenko, M, Babych, O. Restoration of war-damaged soil fertility to ensure sustainable agricultural production, food security and global recognition of Ukraine. Scientific Horizons. 2024. 27(6):129-140. https://doi:10.48077/scihor6.2024.129
23. Ibrahim, K, Bavorova, M, Zhllima, E. Food security and livelihoods in protracted cri-sis: the experience of rural residents in Syria’s war zone. Food Security. 2024; 16:659–673. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-024-01446-z
24. Lu, J., G. Li, J. Huang, L. Zhang, J Wang, D. Zhu, and Z. Yalo. Impacts of the 20-year war on crop planting and food security in Afghanistan, International Journal of Digital Earth, 2024 17:1, 2344585. https://doi:10.1080/17538947.2024.2344585
25. Al-Saidi, M. Caught off guard and beaten: The Ukraine war and food security in the Middle East. Frontiers in Nutrition. 2023; https://doi.10.3389/fnut.2023.983346
26. Boon, EK, Kobliansska, I, Ahenkan, A, Kanton, RAL, Kyrylenko, M.. The dilemmas of agri-food systems and food and nutrition security in Africa: Lessons from the Rus-so-Ukrainian war. Geopolitics under Globalization. 2025; 6(1), 59-70. https://doi.org/10.21511/gg.06(1).2025.06
27. Business Ukraine Magazine. 2019. Post to facebook.com July 3. https://www.facebook.com/BusinessUkraineMagazine/
28. Feingold, S. Ukraine’s food exports by the numbers. World Economic Forum. July 25, 2022, Updated June 3, 2025; Downloaded 3.06.2026. Ukraine’s food exports by the numbers | World Economic Forum
29. Avramenko, O. Ukraine Agricultural Exports 2024. Linked In 6 March 2026. Head of the EU Integration Committee at Ukrainian Agibusiness Club Association (UCAB) on Ukrainian Agri-food exports. 2024; https://dia.dp.gov.ua/en/ukraine-exported-5-million-tons-of-agricultural-products-in-february-2026/
30. Ukrainian agricultural exports exceed 11 billion in six months, according to the Committee on Agrarian and Land Policy. 2025, August 5. Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. https://www.rada.gov.ua/en/news/News/264685.html
31. FAS/USDA (Foreign Agricultural Service/United States Department of Agricul-ture). Global Market Analysis World Selected Countries and Regions. 2023/24 to project 2025/26 Tables 02, Wheat,04 Corn,06 Oats,10, Total Oilseed,11 Soybean,14 Sunflower Seed,15 Rapeseed. February 2026; Downloaded 3.16.2026. Ukraine | USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
32. Obukh, W. From crisis to hope. How Ukrainian agricultural exports are weathering one of their toughest seasons. ZNUA Mirror of the Week. 12 September 2025. Down-loaded March 16, 2026 Ukraine's agricultural sector in 2025: what disrupted exports and what farmers are hoping for - https://zn.ua
33. WFP (World Food Program USA). WPF projects food insecurity could reach record levels as a result of Middle East escalation. March 17, 2026. Global Hunger Could Reach Record Levels Because of Conflict.
34. FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations). FAO’s role in hu-manitarian mine action. Office of Emergencies and Resilience. 2024; OER-Director@fao.org fao.org/emergencies Rome, Italy CD2750EN/1/11.24 FAO's role in humanitarian mine action.
35. Morton, LW, Bitto, EA, Oakland, MJ, Sand, M. Solving the problems of Iowa food de-serts: Food insecurity and civic structure. Rural Sociology. 2005; 70(1):94-112.
36. Nkoko, N, Cronje, N, Swanepoel, JW. Factors associated with food security among small-holder farming households in Lesotho. Agricultural & Food Security. 2024; 13:3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40066-023-00454-0
37. Santos, M, Rebola, S. Evtuguin, DV. Soil remediation: current approaches and emerging bio-based trends. Soil Systems. MDPI. 2025:9: 35. https://doi.org/10.3390/soilsystems9020035
38. Hatfield, JL, Sauer, T, eds. Soil Management: Building a Stable Base for Agriculture. American Society of Agronomy and Soil Science of America. Madison, WI USA; 2011.
39. Olson, KR, Ebelhar, SA, Lang, JM. Effects of 24 years of tillage on SOC and crop productivity. Special edition. Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture. 2013; 1:1-10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/617504
40. Olson, KR, Ebelhar, SA, Lang, JM. Long-term effects of cover crops on crop yields, soil organic carbon stocks and sequestration. Open Journal of Soil Science. 2014; 4(8): 284-292. http://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2014.48030
41. Wohl, E, Lane, SN, Wilcox, AC. The science and practice of river restoration. Water Resources Res., American Geophysical Union. 2015; 51, 5974-5997. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014WR016874
42. Nguyen, KN, Chau, TAT, Nguyen,TKO, Le, TX, Morton, LW, Demyan, MS, Huu, TT, Dang, HG, Duong, MV, Vu, NT, Huseyin, BT.. Isolation of biosurfactant producing bacteria from dioxin-contaminated soil and their biodegradation capacity to diben-zofuran. Biocatalysis & Agricultural Biotechnology. 2025. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcab.2025.103490
43. Haider, FU, Wang, X, Zulfiqar, U, Farooq, M, Hussain, S, Mehmood, T, Naveed, M, Li, Y, Liqun, C, Saeed, Q, Ahmad, I, Mustafa, A. Biochar application for remediation of organic toxic pollutants in contaminated soils: An update. Ecotoxicology and Envi-ronmental Safety. 2022; 248:114322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.114322
44. African Orphan Crops Consortium. African Orphan Crops Consortium – Healthy Af-rica through nutritious, diverse and local food crops. https://africanorphancrops.org
45. SfL (Solutions from the Land):Morton, LW, Yoder, F, Shea, E, Anderson, J, Bridge-forth, K, Doyle, B, Gaesser, R, Kawamura, AG, Kent, , Kimble, M, LaCross, B, Moller, A, Shapiro, H, Ulibarri, V. Solutions from the Land Data Policy Guidance on Farm Data: Strengthening Collection, Analysis and Use of Agriculture and Food Sys-tem Data for Sustainable Development Attainment (SDGs). Solutions from the Land. Lutherville, MD USA. 2023. 2023.10.10-SfL-Data Policy_Guide_2023-Final1.pdf
46. Bulgakov, V, Holovach, I, Demydenko, A, Trokhaniak, O. Study of moisture condi-tions of chernozem in the left-bank forest-steppe of Ukraine. International Scientific Journal Mechanization in Agriculture & Conserving of Resources. 2024; WEB ISSN 2603-3712; PRINT ISSN 2603-3704. https://stumejournals.com/am/2024/4/135.full.pdf
47. SfL (Solutions from the Land), Morton, LW, Hatfield, J, Kawamura, AG, Kimble, M, Lovejoy, T, O’Toole, P, Shapiro, H, Vats, V, Williams, B, Yoder, F. 21st Century Re-naissance: Solutions from the Land. Solutions from the Land. Lutherville, MD USA. 2021. https://www.solutionsfromtheland.org/
48. UNEP (United Nations Environmental Program). Freshwater Priorities 2022-2025. To implement UNEP’s medium-term strategy. Inter-Divisional Water Group. 2022. Freshwater Strategic Priorities 2022-2025 | UNEP - UN Environment Programme
49. UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) Farmers Con-stituency. Informal consultation submitted on the 2026 Mitigation Work Programme dialogue, intervention statement. March 2026.
50. Morton, LW, Girgis, C, Shea, E. Cross-Boundary Collaboration in Large Working Landscape Management: Anticipating and Planning for Climate Disruption and Con-tinuous Change in US West Grassland-Forest Working Landscapes. Solutions from the Land, Lutherville MD USA. 2024. Headwaters of the Colorado - Solutions from the Land
51. UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe).The Water Convention and Protocol on Water and Health. Convention on the Protection and Use of Trans-boundary Watercourse and International Lakes . Intergovernmental platform to fa-cilitate cooperation on sustainable use of transboundary water resources. 2026. The Water Convention and the Protocol on Water and Health | UNECE
Downloads
Published
Data Availability Statement
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the author upon reasonable request.