Traditionally, environmental concerns have focused on development and conservation, but more recently, with
mounting concerns about the impact of global climate change, the environment has increasingly become a major
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security concern. This new security field is imbued with the understanding that it is possible to reverse environmental
degradation and that it is linked to demographic and economic developments. Threats to environmental security may
include: deforestation and the threat to biodiversity; water scarcity; global climate change; and ozone depletion.
While environmental security may have recently been sidelined by more immediate security threats like terrorism,
encouraging signs exist that it is regaining importance.