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Dear
Friends!
Two
years have passed since the start of Russia's
full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The war and
occupation of Donbas and Crimea, however, began
a decade earlier. Naturally, such a protracted
conflict negatively affects not only ecosystem
protections, but also the development of civil
society in the region. These last two years have
been the most difficult, and an “East-West”
confrontation may yet develop. Global human
society has not known such a degree of tension
since, perhaps, the Cold War. In reckoning with
the full-scale invasion, the UWEC Work Group
editorial team and our experts review the most
significant, in their assessment, environmental
consequences of the
war:
War
has a devastating impact on civil society and
community initiatives. While civil society
activists have demonstrated a high level of
solidarity and the volunteer movement is strong
during this full-scale invasion, the fighting is
a distraction from important projects and
initiatives, including environmental issues. In
totalitarian and authoritarian countries such as
Russia and Belarus, civic activism is
persecuted. And if in Belarus these repressions
began in 2020 even before the war, then in
Russia repression may still be gaining momentum.
Read about the persecution of environmental
activists in Russia in 2023 in our analysis of
an Ecological Crisis Group
report:
One
potentially significant consequence of the
full-scale invasion could lead to a global
energy crisis. Growing divisions of the world
into “West” and “East” is leading toward a new
colonialist race for influence in developing
countries. On the one hand, Russia, the European
Union, and the United States seek to protect
themselves in the context of this growing energy
crisis, while on the other, they also want to
preserve and develop their regional interests.
Investments in large-scale projects are often
the result, including, for example, the case of
the Rogun hydropower plant in Tajikistan. Read
hydropower expert Eugene Simonov’s assessment of
the latest developments related to construction
of one of the most harmful projects in Central
Asia, both in terms of environmental harm and
socio-political
stability:
One
of UWEC’s most important areas of work is
identifying “green” recovery solutions. Our
experts have repeatedly spoken out against the
restoration of the Kakhovka dam’s reservoir.
Despite that coverage, we have not written much
about alternative solutions for the two biggest
challenges – energy and agriculture. In a new
article, UWEC Work Group experts share their
assessment that modernized irrigation planning
and development of a more efficient energy
generation system makes it possible to avoid
rebuilding the morally- and structurally-
obsolete Soviet-era Kakhovka hydropower
plant.
UWEC
Work Group publishes a monthly review of events,
projects, and news related to the environmental
consequences of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In
the latest release, you can learn about several
analytical and visualization tools, including
Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group’s
Biodiversity Viewer. We have also summarized the
highlights of an expert discussion broadcast by
Ukraine’s Dim TV network on the state of nature
reserves and national parks in Ukraine including
Viktor Shapoval, director of Askania-Nova Nature
Reserve, currently under Russian occupation.
Lastly, we also track government and
inter-governmental projects focusing on the
war’s environmental consequences, such as the
“Environmental Pact for Ukraine,” including
assessing the degree to which experts and
community organization representatives are able
to participate. Read more in this
issue:
As
always, we monitor the environmental
consequences of the invasion on our
website,
on
Twitter
(X), and on
Facebook
and Telegram.
We
wish you strength and peace!
Alexej
Ovchinnikov
Editor,
UWEC Work Group
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