*[Enwl-eng] UWEC Work Group Issue # 15

[enwl]

UWEC Work Group Issue # 15We are continuing to analyze the environmental 
consequences of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

                              We are continuing to analyze the environmental 
consequences of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.


                                We are continuing to analyze the 
environmental consequences of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.



                                Dear friends!

                                “The war is slowing down… All processes are 
becoming more complicated and slower,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr 
Zelensky recently said. But this does not mean that the danger for people 
and nature has grown any less. In fact, the likelihood of a disaster is as 
high as ever, and has not receded since the destruction of the dam at the 
Kakhovka hydropower plant. For example, the IAEA is currently reporting on 
an increase in military activity near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. 
Unfortunately, the war goes on, and it is as important as ever to understand 
what is happening, to speak about it, and to find solutions and ways out 
which will allow us to restore both the cities and nature that have suffered 
from the conflict.

                                The restoration of Ukraine was the main 
subject of discussion at the URC23 conference which took place in London in 
June. While the conference can hardly be labeled “shameful” – as was the 
case with last year’s meeting in Lugano – no ambitious solutions were 
presented during the event. Ukrainian environmental journalist Viktoria 
Hubareva has prepared an exclusive overview for UWEC Work Group of what 
happened in London at the end of June.

                                a.. URC23 Review: Ukraine offers investment 
opportunities
                                In order to develop a recovery plan for 
Ukraine, it is also necessary to understand the consequences of the 
full-scale invasion. As we have already noted on several occasions, many 
consequences are of a transnational character. The war is now increasingly 
spreading beyond the borders of Ukraine and Russia. Military drones have 
twice been recorded falling onto Romanian soil in recent days, and the 
serious impact of military activity on transborder territories such as the 
Black Sea are clear. You can read about the negative effects of the 
full-scale invasion on the waters of one of the region’s most important seas 
in the article by Sofya Sadohurska, an expert from the Ukrainian 
environmental organization Ecodia.

                                a.. Impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine 
on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov
                                Another example of cross-border influence is 
the militarization of borders. This is felt especially strongly in Poland, 
Lithuania and Latvia. These countries are not only Ukraine’s most active 
supporters, but have a more comprehensive view of the war. Following the 
migrant crisis on the border with Belarus in 2021, they took the decision to 
build and strengthen fences along their frontiers. Ukraine is also 
reinforcing its border with Belarus. A barrier like this is seen as one of 
the ways of demilitarizing the border with Russia after the end of the war. 
However, these decisions, driven by security policies, have an extremely 
negative impact on the environment. Read about the impact of fences and 
enclosures on wild animal populations in Vadim Kirilyuk’s article:

                                a.. Beasts and Barriers: Obstacles along 
international borders and their impact on land-based vertebrates
                                As we have previously reported, the war also 
has consequences in regions far from the combat zone, where nature is also 
suffering as a result of the invasion. The imposition of sanctions and the 
refusal to finance the war through the purchase of carbon-based fuels in 
Russia has seen the aggressor begin to seek other sales markets. The most 
prospective of these is China, to which Moscow now plans to redirect its gas 
supplies. This, however, will require the building of new infrastructure, 
which will potentially pass through the unique natural landscapes of Altai 
or Tunka. Unfortunately, today there is almost nobody left to protect them, 
and stopping the construction of a pipeline, like several years ago, will be 
impossible – largely thanks to the designation of NGOs such as the Altai 
Project as “undesirable.” You can read about the possible consequences and 
how Altai may suffer from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in our article:

                                a.. Gas intrigues: Pipelines, nature 
preserves, NGOs and the war

                                You can also learn about the increasingly 
intense persecution of environmental activists in Russia and Belarus since 
the beginning of the full-scale invasion by watching recordings from our 
webinar, organized in collaboration with RSF Sweden and Svea Green 
Foundation.


                                a.. Webinar #4. Persecution of environmental 
activists in Russia and Belarus before and after the start of Russia’s 
military invasion of Ukraine

                                The destruction of nature as a result of 
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is increasingly frequently being described as 
ecocide. But while this term has a long history – discussions of what 
constitutes ecocide have been ongoing since the 1970s – it remains not only 
unrecognized in international practice, but there is no established 
definition at national level. What do we understand by ecocide? To what 
degree are Ukraine and Russia willing to integrate ecocide into their legal 
system? Which other countries recognize ecocide? How is data on ecocide 
being gathered in Ukraine? We have tried to answer these and other questions 
in our introductory article on the subject:

                                a.. On the path to international recognition 
of ecocide

                                We continue to follow the environmental 
consequences of the invasion on our website, on Twitter (X) and on Facebook.

                                We wish you strength and peace!

                                Alexej Ovchinnikov, editor, UWEC Work Group
























                  UWEC · Charnali, 2 · Charnali 6400 · Georgia




            From: UWEC Work Group
            Sent: Monday, September 18, 2023 2:59 PM
            Subject: UWEC Work Group Issue # 15




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