How much damage the Russian aggression has done to Ukraine's environment has been revealed

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16:00, 05.06.2023

For war crimes against the Ukrainian environment, law enforcers have registered about 200 proceedings.



The total amount of environmental damage since the start of the full-scale invasion has been 1,970bn hryvnyas, according to the Office of the Prosecutor-General.

The issue of environmental damage has always been topical in Ukraine, but the full-scale war has made this problem much more acute because Russia is now causing irreparable damage to our environment.

It is noted that the Office of the Prosecutor General has been recording environmental crimes by Russia since the first days of the invasion.

The first criminal proceedings on attacks on facilities containing dangerous forces - nuclear power plants and other nuclear facilities, hydro-technical facilities - have been registered. The consequences of Russian aggression on Ukraine's external environment are catastrophic. The total amount of damage resulting from the actions of the aggressor state is 1,970bn hryvnyas," the statement said.

Currently, Ukraine ranks first in terms of the area contaminated by explosive objects. It is estimated that 174,000 square metres have been mined in Ukraine. Mines and fires have affected 2 million hectares of forests and 20 per cent of protected areas.

In addition, the Russians have created a nuclear and radiation threat. This is due to the occupation of the Exclusion Zone and the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which lasted 35 days. The amount of direct damage due to the occupation of the Exclusion Zone was 3.2 billion hryvnias.

The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the largest in Ukraine and Europe, and the South Ukraine nuclear power plant were shelled by the Russian army. The Zaporizhzhya plant has remained under occupation since March 2022. As a result of the missile attacks on the Ukrainian energy system, for the first time in history all four Ukrainian nuclear power plants have been shut down," the prosecutor's office added.

It is noted that the investigation continues into 190 criminal proceedings for crimes against the environment. sixteen persons have been informed of suspicion, and acts of accusation have been forwarded to ten of them. Two people have been convicted, which is the first conviction for war crimes against environment in Ukraine.

In May 2023, a court sentenced two Russian servicemen in the case of the seizure of the Kakhovska HPP facilities and the undermining of the North Crimean canal dam in Kherson oblast. The criminals were sentenced to 12 years in prison and ordered to pay 1.5bn hryvnyas.

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Artur Zayonts

Artur Zayonts specialises in news from the frontline. A historian by education, Arthur has always sought to bring depth and context to his journalistic work.