Russia’s Invasion Is Putting the Future of Ukraine’s Forests at Risk

Aug 5, 2022 | Yehor Hrynyk
View Original

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sparked Europe’s largest armed conflict since WWII and inflicted catastrophic damage on the continent’s largest nation. In addition to the staggering human and economic toll of Putin’s war, Ukraine is also facing an ecological crisis with the country’s forests particularly at risk. The most immediate wartime threat facing Ukraine’s forests is posed by wildfires. Between the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 and the end of May, more than 160,000 hectares of Ukrainian forest burned down in regions affected by hostilities.

The Head of Ukraine’s State Forest Agency and the Minister of Environment have officially unveiled plans to increase the volume of felling. These efforts are set to focus primarily on logging in hard-to-reach mountains and wetlands. In other words, we could soon witness the destruction of Ukraine’s most valuable remaining natural forests.