A briefing for the International Working Group on the Environmental Consequences of War took place at the President's office

The office of the President of Ukraine has a briefing for members of the International Working Group on Russia's Environmental Crimes, dedicated to the situation in Ukraine, military crimes of the Russian Federation and the consequences of undermining the structures of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station.

The meeting was attended by: Vice President of the European Parliament Gaidi Gutala, the former European Commissioner for Environment and ex-Foreign Minister of Sweden Margot Walstrom, President of Ireland in 1990-1997 Mary Robinson, Eco-Activist Greta, Senior Council. Institute of Peace, Head of the CMI (The Crisis Management Initiative) in Eurasia Roksan Kristesska.

The briefing was held by: First Vice Prime Minister-Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko, Deputy Head of Presidential Office Rostislav Shurma, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Ruslan Streach and Alexander Bevz. Yulia Sviridenko spoke about the consequences of Russia started in Ukraine. According to her, more than 100 thousand square meters have been replaced in our country.

Km of the territory, in particular agricultural land, which adversely affects the agricultural sector and, as a consequence, worsens the food situation in the world. The First Vice Prime Minister stressed that Ukraine needs an increase in capacity for humanitarian demining, including a large number of appropriate equipment and sappers. “Ukraine is now the most replaced country in the world. First of all, we need to strengthen the state's ability to mine.

Three thousand sappers are not enough, they need to increase their number, ”Yulia Sviridenko is convinced. It noted the importance of developing a territorial demining strategy. According to Rostislav Shurma, undermining the Russian occupiers of the Kakhovskaya Hydroelectric Power Plant caused significant losses to the agriculture of Ukraine, energy, housing stock, objects of transport infrastructure and the environment as a whole.

According to him, the calculation of direct losses from this disaster is ongoing, now the amount is about $ 2 billion. USA. “It is a matter of significant economic and environmental damage. Flora, fauna, agriculture, forestry, national landscape parks. It is value that is important to the world, for nature, ”added the deputy head of the Presidential Office.

Rostislav Shurma also noted that humanitarian support is needed by people living in the territories affected by a catastrophe at the Kakhovsky hydroelectric power station. He said that the possibility of creating a separate fund in the medium term to attract funds for the restoration of hydroelectric power plants, energy, agriculture, irrigation systems, as well as flora and fauna of the region in the medium term.

The Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Ruslan Streach said that 30% of Europe's biodiversity is concentrated in Ukraine. According to him, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, in the framework of work on bringing the Russian Federation to justice, prepared a methodology for assessing the damage caused to natural resources of Ukraine by Russian aggression. More than 240 cases of ecocide have been registered.

“We see that our territories become targets for missiles, shells and mines that destroy our valuable resources. This harms our ability to fight climatic changes. We do not want our land to become a landfill for Russian tanks, ”Ruslan Strilet said. He spoke about the work of the web resource and the mobile application "Ecosaggrosis", which enables digital technologies to determine the degree of damage to the environment even in temporarily occupied territories.

“I am from Kherson, and the catastrophe that happened there affected the hearts of all Ukrainians. It hurts when you see how they destroy the area where you lived, where you lived several generations of your family. My grandmother's house was destroyed by a rocket, the house of her parents flooded, the house of relatives was spreading a rocket, a piece of which fell to my little sister's bed.

Many Ukrainians can tell similar stories, ”said Advisor to the Head of the Presidential Office Darius Zarivna. The Minister of Energy of Ukraine noted that the challenges of the war found weaknesses in the Ukrainian energy system and showed the need for decentralization of energy distribution. The most fastest path to this Germany Galushchenko called the transition to the use of renewable energy sources.

"The Russians destroyed more than ten mines, and this accelerated the transition to" green "energy," he stated. The Minister recalled that Ukraine has approved a new energy strategy that is aimed at refusing to use coal by 2035. Our state sees the potential for the use of solar and wind power. In particular, he said, after victory in the war and the return of all territories, Ukraine will have considerable potential for the development of wind power on the Black and Azov seas.

Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin spoke about the work carried out by the prosecutor's office to hold Russia accountable for environmental crimes. He noted that in such cases, one of the most difficult moments is to determine the amount of losses for compensation, as there are different methodologies of harm assessment. Therefore, the prosecutor's office attracts all available resources to determine the cost of losses and establish a link between aggression and environmental crime.