The impact of the war in Ukraine on biodiversity and nature conservation

War affects the natural world in ways that can often be overlooked. From ancient times to the present day, wars have always had a profound impact on the environment, causing long-lasting and far-reaching damage to ecosystems, wildlife, and natural resources. This takes place in the form of fires, deforestation, pollution, planted landmines and the abandonment of sites that need protection or become dangerous, among others. With modern warfare, the destruction has only become more severe. Join us for a conversation with Ostap Reshetylo, project manager at our network partner World Wildlife Fund Ukraine, to learn more about the environmental impact of the war in Ukraine, its current and future implications, and what can be done.

During WWI alone, 9 million horses were killed, and huge landscape changes were caused by trench warfare. In just two months of WWII, about 200,000 animals perished, and the environmental impacts were so drastic that they could be seen during the Cold War and up to the present day. As another example, during the Vietnam War, chemical deforestation techniques brought habitats to a near apocalyptic state. Therefore, the impact of war on biodiversity and nature conservation cannot be overstated. In the case of the war in Ukraine, it is also important to discuss some of the consequences that the fighting has had for the environment.

Occupied territories

*Featured image:* *Ukraine Crisis Media Center*

During the first month of the war, around 25% of the naturally protected territories in Ukraine were under occupation: this entailed about 900 protected areas, including 14 internationally important wetlands. Some of these are part of the Emerald Network, a European-wide protected area network outside of the EU states (analogue to Natura 2000) established to protect species and habitats that are threatened to become extinct. Fortunately, some of these occupied Emerald Sites have been liberated, however, the ones in the Eastern and Southern part of Ukraine are still under occupation.

After six months of the war, the proportion of protected areas under occupation decreased to 20% (from 1.2, to 0.9 million hectares). However, some of the most important protected areas in Ukraine such as national parks, biosphere and nature reserves are still occupied. “It was calculated by our officials that the damages made to the Ukrainian environment by the war are equal to more than 50 billion dollars”, explained Ostap. He also highlighted that it is currently impossible to know the full effects of the war on the habitats, animals and ecosystems in those regions, as they are impossible to access and monitor.

Forests

In terms of forests, 7,300km2 of forest land is currently under occupation, including Crimea. Although some forests have been liberated, they are also heavily mined, posing a significant threat not only to people but to animals as well. Numerous animal deaths have already been caused by detonated mines. In addition, active fighting took place in 5% of the forest area in Ukraine, which also entails financial losses—according to an international evaluation mentioned by Ostap, Ukraine forests provide about 37 billion US dollars worth of ecosystem services every year.

Fires

In only four months of the war, 37,867 fires took place, and they reached about 1006km2. Ostap emphasised that most of these fires did not happen during the warm period of the year, and noted that according to the Ukrainian national conservation group, every third fire took place in a protected area. It is also not a coincidence that the most intensive fires were connected to active combat, primarily in the East and South of Ukraine.

Mines: the dangerous and complex dismantling process

According to the State of Emergency Service of Ukraine, in almost one year of war, over 300,000 mines and other dangerous objects have been dismantled. However, while the areas in which they were able to do this represent only 0.5% of all territories in Ukraine with potentially planted mines, these are believed to be a threat in one third of the country.

“Just imagine,” said Ostap, “one third of this huge European country is, to different extents, impacted by objects that can blow up.” He clarifies that according to the experts, full demining of the country might take up to 10 years or longer, and will cost about 2 billion euros. Mined crop fields also entail high financial losses: some of them have been damaged so badly, explained Ostap, that it is dangerous for anyone to approach them, and the soil will be unusable for a very long period of time.

The UN recently assessed that Ukraine is probably the most heavily mined country in the world at the present time. This is incredibly dangerous for both people and nature, in different ways. “Although we can prevent people from going into potentially mined territories during the dismantling process, we cannot do this for animals,” stated Ostap. Since it is impossible to stop the animals or dictate their movements, this leads to heartbreaking stories of red deer, wild boar and other big animals falling victim to detonated mines. “This happens especially where the heavy fighting has taken place, such as the northern part of Ukraine, in the Chornobyl exclusive area, for example,” Ostap went on.

On the other hand, he noted that it is impossible to assess the situation in the part of Ukraine that has been occupied for the last ten years. Similarly, it is impossible to demine these territories, which have been in Russia’s control for a longer period of time.

Impact on animals

Ostap pointed out that species distributed in the Eastern and South Eastern parts of Ukraine have been highly impacted by fires caused by the active fighting. Some of the steppe species whose habitats have been disturbed or destroyed are nationally and internationally protected, such as the spiked magician, caspian whipsnake, steppe marmot, or the marbled polecat, among others.

Nature conservation laws during wartime

According to the Geneva Convention, which was adopted after WWII, even during war nations have a duty not to damage and to respect the environment. However, the existence of this law unfortunately does not guarantee that it will be respected. Ostap explained that another key point of this convention is that war prisoners deserve basic services such as food and water, but this is also not ultimately guaranteed by the aggressor.

What the World Wildlife Fund is doing now

Ostap mentions that right before the war, WWF Ukraine was about to relocate and reintroduce eight European bison from Poland to the Chornobyl exclusion zone, to release them in the wild. This effort was part of a huge international project that had everything ready to go. However, right before the bison were transported, the war erupted. The plans were unfortunately cancelled, and everyone involved still hopes that they can resume at a later date. “This is an example,” said Ostap, “of the direct impact of the war on our plans.”

Ostap is located in the western part of Ukraine, which is not directly impacted by the fighting—although of course, they are impacted by the war in general (with recurrent air alarms and power shortages). The western part of Ukraine is also close to the Carpathian mountains, which is a field site for Nature FIRST, and fortunately, it is still possible to carry out field work there. “When it comes to the Nature FIRST project, our territory of interest is located in the Carpathian mountains and the border with Romania”, said Ostap. “We hope that it will not be impacted so we can continue with our work. But no one knows: although we hope for the best, it can change every second.”

On the other hand, a lot of the work that WWF Ukraine is currently doing is theoretical. “For example, during the last year, we approved the national plan for European bison protection,” explained Ostap. “It was adopted by the Ministry of Ukraine, and it’s a document that can be used by all interested parties, with the goal of improving bison conservation in Ukraine,” he concludes.

Although international conventions to protect nature in spite of armed conflict are not always respected, organisations like WWF actively and strategically strive for nature conservation. Nature FIRST is proud to have WWF Ukraine as a partner organisation, as we develop predictive, proactive and preventative capabilities to halt biodiversity loss and protect species and ecosystems.

THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON BIODIVERSITY AND NATURE CONSERVATION