Dear friends!
The mission of our work group is to report on the environmental consequences of Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine. Together with experts from all over the world, we not only analyze the consequences, but seek solutions that will ensure nature protection when conflict activities end. With this aim, UWEC team members attend conferences, participate in seminars, and provide expert commentary. A couple of months ago two large events took place, at which the environmental consequences of the war in Ukraine were discussed — World Water Week in Stockholm and the conference of the European Society for Ecosystem Restoration in Tartu, Estonia. Special attention was paid to the problem of restoring the ecosystem of the Kakhovka Reservoir. Our expert Eugene Simonov took part in the discussions. You can read about the results of the conference in more detail in his article:
A post-war response that is Green Deal-oriented requires coordinated work at various levels. The most important thing, however, is that local people are engaged and involved. Imported ideas and solutions that are not adapted to the needs of local communities (known in Ukraine as “hromady“), will not be effective. It is crucial, therefore, not only to engage with, but also to hear the demands of the local population. UWEC Work Group journalist and expert Viktoria Hubareva traveled to the shores of the former Kakhovka Reservoir, whose bed is now covered by the “green sea” of a recovering forest ecosystem, to learn about the needs of local communities and the challenges they face:
Every month, the UWEC Work Group’s editorial board and experts prepare a review bringing together the most important events related to the environmental consequences of the war and the search for solutions. In the latest issue, you can read about a study of the impact of pollution on groundwater in Ukraine resulting from military activity, as well as the potentially disastrous environmental impact of the “shadow fleet” used by Russia to bypass sanctions in the Baltic Sea, and also the importance of Ukraine becoming a signatory of the Rome Statute to support efforts to recognize ecocide as an international crime.
Over the past year, there has been a sense from global media coverage that there have been fewer high-profile events in Ukraine. This is not the case. Environmental pollution in Ukraine and Eastern Europe is continuing at the same pace, if not increasing. Military action is already occurring on the territory of both Ukraine and Russia. Industrial facilities, oil storage facilities, and forests are burning, and it is believed that an accident at a plant in Russia’s Kursk Region has led to a transboundary catastrophe and pollution of the Seim River. The river flows through Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions, as well as the Sumy and Chernihiv regions of Ukraine. The pollution of the Seim has also led to pollution of the Desna River, which feeds the Kyiv Reservoir. Read more about the consequences of environmental pollution in this article by UWEC Work Group journalist and expert Viktoria Hubareva:
As we analyze the environmental consequences of Russia’s war in Ukraine, our experts are increasingly coming to understand that it may take years to overcome them. In particular, solving the issue of the pollution of the environment with military waste will take a significant amount of time, since vast areas of the country are now heavily mined. The issue of landmines is one of the chief threats to both infrastructure restoration and the development of agriculture in Ukraine, as well as for conservation areas, some of which are currently not able to provide their recreational services. Read Oleksiy Vasyliuk’s analysis of the long-term effects of landmines in Ukraine:
You can find more texts and news about the environmental consequences of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on our site, on Twitter (X), Facebook, Telegram and BlueSky
We wish you strength and peace!
Alexei Ovchinnikov, editor of UWEC Work Group