Environmental Impact of Militarization in Gotland

GOTLAND, SWEDEN - AUGUST 04: Ingrid, one of the founders of the Sunderbyn Eco Village in Gotland island, works her shift time at the kitchen as she cooks the lunch meal for the community’s participants in Gotland Island, Sweden on August 04, 2022. The members of the community are among those raising awareness of the environmental impact by the military expansion of the Swedish army. The presence of military troops in Gotland island increased in recent years in the frame of the Russian military operations against Ukraine, starting with the annexation of Crimea back in March 2014. Since then, the Swedish military is taking steps to strengthen its presence in the island with a large acceptance of the local population, yet triggering the concern of the environmental groups who observe the deployment of the army personnel and military exercises across the island as a negative impact in the life ecosystem at both: in the human and the wild spheres.