Environmental aspects of the demilitarization and destruction of ordnance

In the last ten years, the Serbian Army has been facing the problem of surplus of various ordnance, which resulted from the changes in the organizational structure and rationalization. In addition, at several locations in Serbia there is still a large amount of unexploded ordnance remaining after the NATO bombing. The paper examined the environmental aspects of the destruction of surplus ammunition and unexploded ordnance. A brief survey of the methods of destruction and the technological conditions for their implementation are presented. The impact of toxic constituents of ordnance on human health and the environment is analyzed in particular. In order to minimize environmental risks during the demilitarization process of ordnance, appropriate proposals are given.