The cost of environmental damage caused by Russia is currently at about UAH 8 trillion – Oleksandr Stavniichuk

According to preliminary estimates, Russia has caused almost 2 trillion hryvnias in damage to Ukraine’s nature impacting heavy air, water, and soil pollution, estimating about 6 trillion hryvnias cost of losses are related to leaving a toxic trace on Ukrainian soil. 

Oleksandr Stavniichuk, Head of the Environmental Control Department of the Environmental Control and Methodology Division of the Ministry of Environment, provided the details during a roundtable discussion at the Ukraine-Ukrinform Media Center on collecting compensation from russia for environmental damage. 

“There are seven mythologies that have been promulgated at the Ukrainian level that are effective for our legislation to document the environmental damage. These are the State Ecological Inspectorate and the State Service of Geology and Mineral Resources inspections recording the total number of cases of environmental damages according to these tools in terms of resources. This includes contaminated atmospheric air, water, soil, land, water, forests, and nature reserves. As of today, the monetary values of the damage to the environment are almost 2 trillion in losses related to caused water, atmosphere, and soil pollution.  As for subsoil, it is already about 6 trillion,” he said.

According to Oleksandr Stavniychuk, the Ministry of Environment is working with many international organizations, collecting evidence and all the developments of international and domestic experts to improve existing methods that will allow calculating damages of recorded cases of crimes against the environment and further collecting compensation from the aggressor.

“I believe that the existing methods will be amended after these developments. There is a headquarters at the State Environmental Inspectorate, and about 60 experts are involved. That is, both international experts and Ukrainian specialists are working towards these methods to improve significantly. And now, the main task is to record cases and conduct research and eventually form a dossier of the damage. The main thing is that we have a sufficient evidence base that will be used in the future to get all the reimbursements for the environmental toll of war.”

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news