Chernobyl, rusting industrial relics of the Soviet era, heavy pollution and mountains of waste ‑ Ukraine has one of the world’s bleakest environmental landscapes.
But Environment Minister Serhy Kurykin said on Aug. 15 that he hoped the Johannesburg Earth Summit later this month would bring changes by helping the country fight widespread public indifference toward environmental issues.
“Ecological problems in Ukraine are very serious. We inherited from the Soviet Union piles of industrial waste and ecologically dangerous companies. We also inherited a negligent attitude toward nature,” Kurykin said.
“But I hope the summit will give a powerful boost for a better understanding of ecological problems at the national level and more active practical steps. Currently, Ukraine is doing less than it could and must do.”
President Leonid Kuchma plans to attend the United Nations summit on the environment and development.
One of the worst problems for Ukraine, which is situated on the fringes of an expanding European Union, is radioactive contamination after the explosion at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986, Kurykin said. The Chernobyl plant has been closed since December 2000, but the surrounding land remains highly contaminated.
Another looming danger comes from six hydro power stations on the Dnipro river. Some were built in the 1930s.
“One of the most burning problems now is the problem of water reservoirs for hydropower stations on the Dnipro,” Kurykin said. “Evaporation from the surface of reservoirs causes local climate changes, changing humidity levels in some regions.”
“The technical condition of some dykes is also a reason for serious concern.”
Ecological dangers
Heavy air pollution is another threat, as well as mountains of industrial waste in the industrial east, home to huge steel mills, the major exporters and the backbone of the country’s fragile economic recovery.
Ageing coal mines, where dozens of workers die every year in accidents, are next on the sad list of ecological woes. In July about 60 miners were killed, following explosions at three different coal mines. About 300 workers died last year.
The government plans to restructure the troubled sector and close old and loss‑making collieries. But the minister said officials first had to decide how to pump out underground water, which could flood nearby land and threaten agriculture.
“At a modest estimate, we will need about Hr 2 billion to solve the problem. We do not have it. But we cannot leave the problem as it is. Unfortunately, I cannot say we are close to a solution here.”
Kurykin said the country had made some progress in tackling the issues of air pollution and safely securing dumps of chemicals across the country. But a lot remains to be done as the country’s environmental problems rarely receive proper funding.
“Ecological problems are not local, they are global. We should coordinate efforts and I hope for a positive outcome from the summit and a massive impulse for action in Ukraine and other countries,” Kurykin said.
