The appeal of environmental public organizations to the heads of the central authorities of Ukraine

Posted on 5 April 2022

To the President Of Ukraine
V. Zelensky
Prime Minister of Ukraine
D. Shmyhal
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Of Ukraine
R. Stefanchuk
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine
O. Danilov
Heads of committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (according to the list)

No. 109/2022 of 30.03.2022

On providing expert support
of legislative initiatives by public organizations

The appeal of Environmental Public Organizations

We, as citizens of Ukraine and as representatives of an active civil society, are proud of the dedication and professionalism shown by the state authorities of Ukraine in the face of wartime challenges! We are all committed to achieving a swift and complete victory and beginning the restoration of Ukraine.

We see our goal as providing prompt support and interaction with state authorities at all levels in order to make and implement decisions that best meet the urgent needs associated with the war while avoiding negative consequences for the country's security in the near future. At the same time, we are talking about all aspects of the national security of Ukraine, including environmental safety. From the short and long-term perspective, it is environmental safety that guarantees a decent standard of living, and a safe environment for health, and is also an integral part of further integration into the EU through the introduction of European standards in all areas.

We, Ukrainian and international environmental public organizations, are making this appeal in response to several rapid changes in legislation suggested by the Parliament of Ukraine, which increases the risks of unjustified and large-scale environmental risks for the country now and in the near post-war future. In particular, we are talking about the draft Law No. 7144 of 13.03.2022 (Law No. 2132-IX of 15.03.2022) “on amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine concerning environmental activities and civil protection for the period of martial law” and the draft Law No. 7178 of 13.03.2022 “On amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine concerning the creation of conditions for ensuring food security under martial law”.

We understand that in times of war, decisions must be made confidently and quickly. They must, however, consider the long-term context of the country's development and other challenges, particularly the destruction of bio-resources, soil degradation, water scarcity, biodiversity loss, and climate change, which will not disappear but will only worsen as a result of military operations and negatively impact all aspects of our lives. We believe that environmental analysis and context in legislative decision-making are necessary.

We appeal to the President of Ukraine, the guarantor of the Constitution, to ensure legislative decisions during wartime that will not lead to unjustified large-scale environmental losses and threats to the people of Ukraine, as well as obstacles to the process of European integration. We stress how important it is to make sure that the public and expert groups are involved in changing the legislation.

We appeal to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on ensuring that changes in legislation that are directly or indirectly related to the use of natural resources pass a proper assessment of environmental risks. This includes the participation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Environmental Policy and Management as well as public environmental organizations, ensuring that they do not abuse the legislative process during the war period. We ask people's deputies not to let ill-thought-out changes to the law happen that could lead to large-scale and unjustified challenges to food and water safety systems, the economy as a whole and specific industries, and people's health and well-being in the years after the war.

We appeal to the Prime Minister of Ukraine to provide appropriate support to the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Ukraine in order to establish an expert platform for the development of an environmental and financial assessment of the damage caused to Ukraine's natural resources, specifically, objects of the nature reserve fund, territories of the Emerald network, wetlands and other unique elements of Ukrainian nature. We also ask that you form an interdepartmental working group to help rebuild Ukraine after the war. Different types of public organizations should be able to join this group so that the best technologies from many different fields can be used to rebuild the country.

We offer professional expertise and analysis of normative legal acts and their impacts during the period of martial law in the short and long-term perspective after the war. We are ready to attract leading national and international experts with experience in crisis and post-crisis management to mitigate the consequences of military operations and the negative impact of war on the environment. We are confident that our prompt assistance and expertise in the legislative process will assist in making timely decisions that take into account the conditions of martial law and will aid in the future preservation of Ukraine's natural resources. We must work together not only to achieve victory but also to ensure that the environment remains safe and healthy and that people have a decent standard of living in the context of further European integration.

Signatory organizations:

WWF-Ukraine
Executive Director Bohdan Vykhor
bvykhor@wwf.ua

02002, Kyiv, R. Okipnoi 4/170

The letter was joined by:

Ecology-Law-Human

Executive Director Olena Kravchenko
okravchenko@epl.org.ua

Danube-Carpathian Program

Head of the management board Bohdan Prots
bohdan.prots@gmail.com

Ukrainian Environmental Protection Group

Chairman of the management board Oleksii Vasyliuk
vasyliuk@uncg.org.ua

The appeal of environmental public organizations to the heads of the central authorities of Ukraine

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