Briefing on the environmental damage caused by the russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine (13 July - 26 July, 2024)

On July 17, an online discussion on the principle of “Do No Significant Harm” in the context of war-torn Ukraine took place. The event brought together representatives and experts from non-governmental organizations, the EU, and the Austrian and Croatian governments to discuss the application of the DNSH (Do No Significant Harm) principle in the context of Ukraine's ongoing recovery efforts. Among the participants was Serhiy Vlasenko, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine.

"This principle is aimed at ensuring that all our actions and projects implemented within the framework of climate policy do not have a negative impact on the environment, biodiversity, and human health. This is critically important in today's conditions, when Ukraine is going through difficult times due to the war with Russia,” said Sergiy Vlasenko.

During the discussion, it was emphasized that compliance with the DNSH principle is not only important for sustainable recovery, but also for Ukraine's accession to the European Union. Compliance with environmental and sustainable standards of the EU is a key component of the accession process. Integrating the DNSH into its policies and practices, Ukraine can demonstrate its commitment to these standards, thereby moving forward with its EU membership ambitions.

On July 22, 2024, Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University signed a trilateral memorandum between the International Charitable Organization “Environment-People-Law” in the person of Director Olena Kravchenko, the NGO “Western Ukrainian Resource Center” in the person of Executive Director Vasyl Poluyko and the University, in the person of Acting Rector Ihor Tsependa.

The main objective of the Memorandum is to coordinate the efforts and joint activities of the partner organisations to develop an algorithm for assessing the impact of military operations on natural ecological systems using biological diagnostic methods to further calculate the cost of damage to biotopes through the preparation and implementation of joint activities and projects. The main tasks envisaged in the document include: supplementing modern methods of studying the impact of military operations on the environment; forming an understanding of the direct impact of the environment on human health and life; informing Ukrainian citizens about the main environmental problems of society that have arisen as a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war and ways of overcoming them; providing central executive authorities with a new methodology for collecting facts about the impact of military operations on the environment and human health.

On July 24, as part of a working visit to the Kherson region, the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Ruslan Strilets, together with the First Deputy Head of the Kherson Military Administration, Dmytro Butriy, the Head of the Kherson Municipal Military Administration, Roman Mrochko, the Acting Head of the State Environmental Inspectorate, Ihor Zubovych, and the Head of the All-Ukrainian Environmental League, Tetyana Tymochko, visitedthe central landfill in Kherson.

According to Ruslan Strilets, the landfill is only a short distance from the front line. But not only is it in good condition, it also has a strategic function.

"The frontline Kherson region is one of the areas that suffer the most from shelling. To date, more than 2,000 tonnes of destruction waste has been brought to a separate landfill site.  In the near future, the equipment that Ukraine will receive as part of JICA's support will be used here,” says Ruslan Strilets.

The destruction waste will be crushed into fractions and processed. There is a lot of discussion about pricing, but today there is a consensus that the product of processing destruction waste will be available to the buyer at a lower price than crushed stone.

Also, the Kherson region is still recovering from the explosion of the Kakhovka HPP dam. The Russian terrorist attack left thousands of people without drinking water.

Kherson region is the fourth largest region in Ukraine in terms of environmental damage, amounting to over UAH 266 billion. More than a year ago, this region bore the brunt of the largest environmental and humanitarian disaster in Europe since the Second World War - the explosion of the Kakhovka HPP. The consequences for all ecosystems are enormous.

"The de-occupied area of forests in the Kherson region is 40,000 hectares. They are not available for management, because 98% of them are mined, 50% were flooded during the Kakhovka disaster,’ said Ruslan Strilets.

On 25 July, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Ruslan Strilets, held a joint meeting with the Head of the Mykolaiv Military Administration, Vitaliy Kim, and his deputies.

The meeting was also attended by the heads of the State Forestry Agency Viktor Smal, the State Water Agency Mykhailo Yanchuk, the State Environmental Inspectorate Ihor Zubovych and the head of the All-Ukrainian Environmental League Tetyana Tymochko.

One of the main issues discussed at the meeting was the reform of the State Environmental Inspectorate. We agreed with Vitaliy Kim that the Mykolaiv region will be the first pilot case where the updated SEI will start work.

They also discussed the contamination of water bodies with explosive ammunition as a result of military operations. Ruslan Strilets instructed the State Water Resources Agency and the SEI to work with local authorities on this issue.

As part of his working visit to the Mykolaiv region, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine Ruslan Strilets spoke to the employees of the Main Pumping Station of the Ingulets River Canal Department.

The employees of the pumping station demonstrated the equipment that had been fully restored after the floods. The work cost UAH 200,000 from the state budget and took about two weeks. In USSR times, building such a station would have cost the annual budget of a small town.

Recent attacks on infrastructure and industry sites

On 12 July, 4 hectares of wheat burned in Zaporizhzhia region due to shelling by the Russian army. It happened in one of the villages of the Polohiv district.

‘The work of rescuers was complicated by the possibility of repeated shelling, as well as hot, dry weather, which contributed to the rapid spread of the fire,’ the SES said.

On 19 July, the enemy hit a playground near a civilian house in Mykolaiv with a rocket. Eight apartment buildings and a kindergarten building were damaged.

On 24 July, enemy drones attacked port infrastructure and an apartment building in Izmail, Odesa region. Also, the Russian army attacked the Malodanylivka community in Kharkiv region with a drone: 2 men were injured and a horse stable was on fire.

Pollution caused directly by hostilities

According to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU), from February 24, 2022, to July 26, 2024, a total of 513,112 explosive objects have been neutralized on the territory of Ukraine. An area of 1407 square kilometres has been surveyed.

On 17 July, a working meeting was held to discuss the restoration of the ecological state of Ukraine's soils after the military operations, chaired by the Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Olena Kramarenko, and attended by representatives of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and scientists from the D.K. Zabolotny Institute of Microbiology and Virology of the NAS of Ukraine.

The scientists reported on the state of the soil, based on research in the de-occupied territories, the effects of toxic substances on fertility and the high risk of degradation processes in the humus layers of the soil.

The scientists also presented the method of biological soil remediation, which involves the use of biological products on polluted land that can decompose toxic substances in the soil, and the planting of phytoremediation plants to gradually remove harmful substances and clean up agricultural land.

"During the meeting, we discussed the perspectives of application and a possible action strategy to recover the ecological state of Ukraine's land. We need to assess the damage to Ukraine's soils and create an electronic map database. It is already necessary to develop a roadmap to address the issue of soil pollution with toxic substances after military operations in Ukraine,’ said Olena Kramarenko.

Damage to natural reserves and protected ecosystems

On 18 July, as a result of enemy shelling, a fire was detected in the forests of the Sviati Hory National Park, with forest litter and treetops burning and ammunition detonating.

Such shelling takes place here almost every day. The occupiers are destroying all life around them, committing serious crimes against our environment.

On 17 July, the Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group (UNCG) reported on its Facebook page that Russians had taken 12 rare Chapman's zebras from Askania Nova.

The 12 Chapman's zebras were exchanged for farm animals that have no conservation value. Chapman's zebras are exotic and the most valuable animals of Askania Nova and are included in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

This is not the first time the animals have been taken from the reserve. According to the reserve's legal director, Viktor Shapoval, in 2023 the occupiers took 2 Przewalski's horses (listed in Ukraine's Red Book and the international CITES convention), 2 Chapman's zebras, 2 bison and 1 David's deer.

The actions of the occupation authorities are illegal and endanger the animals. The transport is taking place without qualified assistance and veterinary care.

Based on these facts, the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Ukraine sent an appeal to the governing bodies of environmental conventions regarding Russia's violation of international environmental legislation and the need to take response measures.

Water resources damage

On 25 July, Olena Kramarenko, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, held an on-site working meeting in the village of Saksahan with the participation of Ihor Hopchak, Deputy Head of the State Agency for Water Resources of Ukraine, representatives of the Dnipro Region State Administration, the Regional Water Resources Office of the Dnipro Region, local authorities, representatives of the Kamianske District State Administration and local citizens of the villages of Saksahan and Chumaky.

Decreasing water levels in the Saksahan River" - this is the problem that the citizens of the villages of Saksahan and Chumaky in the Kamianske district of the Dnipro Region addressed to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine.

“Not only Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, but also Dnipropetrovs'k region is affected by the consequences of the terrorist act of the Russian Federation to explode the Kakhovka HPP dam, but the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine is not standing aside and is involved in solving all problems as much as possible,” said Olena Kramarenko.

On 25 July, the Working Group on the Environmental Consequences of the War in Ukraine published a report ‘Environmental Consequences of the War in Ukraine: June 2024 Review’, which focuses on the anniversary of the explosion of the Kakhovka HPP dam, which resulted in the depletion of the reservoir and an environmental and humanitarian disaster in the delta of the Dnipro River.

The report does a good job of analysing the environmental consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka dam. Despite initial concerns about dust storms and the dominance of invasive species, the group of experts recorded the formation of a new, stable ecosystem.  Over the course of a year, more than 100 plant species, mostly native, have appeared on the site, a forest of poplars and willows typical of the region is forming, and a tiered vegetation structure is developing. The research data not only demonstrates nature's ability to regenerate itself, but can also be used to legally qualify the event as an ecocide.

In particular, in this report, the scientists also refer to the report of the Integrated Vision of the Dnipro River initiative of the State Agency for Water Resources of Ukraine, Greenpeace and the Ro3kvit Urban Coalition.

The main goal of the initiative is to demonstrate the Dnipro River as the largest and perhaps the most important river in Ukraine, as well as its historical, cultural, infrastructural and environmental significance for the country as a whole, and the consequences of a full-scale invasion of the river.

According to the Working Group on the Environmental Consequences of the War in Ukraine, 'During this full-scale phase of the war, many towns and other facilities along the Dnipro were destroyed. For example, the village of Gorenka, near Bucha and only 15 kilometres from the Dnipro, was almost completely destroyed. Today, Gorenka is being restored and, as the report's authors note, has the potential to become a symbol of Ukraine's 'green transformation'. National parks and reserves along the river were also affected by the war, as was Ukraine's infrastructure, and recreational use of the river has ceased.

Sauce: https://ecozagroza.gov.ua/en/news/151