Saving the environment from war: Svetlana Grinchuk shared what Ukraine has negotiated with its allies.
Svetlana Grinchuk, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, writes in her blog on Liga.net. Below are the author's words presented without comment.
62 million tons of harmful substances – this is the amount of emissions into the atmosphere from Russian missile strikes, the majority of which have already moved to Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Serbia, Croatia, Poland, etc. 180 million tons of CO2 equivalent – emissions of greenhouse gases caused by the war in Russia, undermining global efforts to combat climate change.
The world is increasingly realizing that the conflict in Ukraine is a global issue. The ecological safety of the entire European continent will remain at risk as long as missile attacks on Ukraine continue.
The communiqué on ecological security consists of the following key elements:
Assessment of environmental damage from the war
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, over 6,000 crimes committed by Russia against Ukraine's environment have been recorded. The damage is estimated at 65 billion euros.
This figure is not final. The de-occupied territories are difficult to inspect due to landmines. In total, 139,000 square kilometers of Ukraine are littered with mines. This is three times the entire area of Switzerland.
Approximately 3 million hectares of Ukrainian forests have been affected by military actions. A third has been burned. Some areas are still under occupation.
During this war, we have experienced the greatest technological disaster since World War II — the Russians blew up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant dam. The reservoir lost 70% of its water. 600,000 hectares of land were affected.
A recent ecological disaster is the pollution of the Sейм and Десна rivers. The Russians dumped wastewater from sugar factories into the Sейм river. The environmental damage to Ukraine amounted to 12 million euros.
Consequently, in the communiqué, our partners reaffirmed their intentions to continue supporting the International Register of Losses and provide auxiliary tools for documenting Russian crimes.
Holding the aggressor accountable for environmental harm
The document discusses the development of universal methodologies and approaches for assessing damage done to the environment. Participants urged all countries to pay attention to this category of war crimes.
No crime against nature can go unpunished. Everyone who harms the environment or plans to do so must be fully aware of the consequences and the inevitability of accountability. Environmental protection principles should be integrated into security policy and effective strategies for managing ecological risks should be developed.
Green and sustainable recovery
Partners acknowledged the importance of creating a special financial mechanism for the restoration of Ukrainian ecosystems and involving relevant experts in this work.
Representatives of countries and international organizations in Helsinki called on the global community to intensify cooperation on implementing technologies for the restoration of soils, flora, fauna, and water resources in Ukraine. They emphasized the importance of conducting a primary assessment of ecosystem conditions and assisting Ukraine in surveying and, where possible, demining affected lands.
Point 8 of the Peace Formula "Ecological Security" should become an important platform for forming international principles of "green" recovery. In Helsinki, agreements were made with partners to work together on developing practical tools and mechanisms that can be used worldwide.
Ensuring ecological sustainability and sustainable development
This involves developing effective strategies for responding to ecological risks – not only in the context of recovery but also in enhancing the resilience of our lands to climate change and ecological disasters. This will also contribute to Ukraine's further movement towards climate neutrality.
In the communiqué, our partners noted that the foundation for such collaborative work can be the International Action Platform for Green Recovery of Ukraine, which was launched in Berlin this year.
In summary
The unprecedented support we heard during our work in Helsinki and the position of our partners outlined in the communiqué once again confirm that the world fully understands the consequences of this war for global ecological security. The work that Ukraine is currently conducting on all international platforms and at all levels can and must change the future for the next generations. Our experience in assessing and calculating environmental damage and holding Russia accountable for ecological crimes should become a global asset. We have made significant progress on this path. Next is the continuation of coordination and planning the next practical steps during the Climate Summit COP29, which will take place in Baku in November this year.
I will also share the results afterward.