Forests, water, animals: what Ukraine has lost because of the war and how much it costs
5 September 15:56
INFOGRAPHICS
From February 24, 2022, to August 29, 2025, the environment of Ukraine suffered damage worth more than UAH 5.8 trillion as a result of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation. This estimate was made by the State Environmental Inspectorate of Ukraine, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
The agency summarized data in all key areas: atmosphere, water, land, forests, flora and fauna.
Atmosphere: fire as an instrument of environmental terror
The atmosphere suffered the greatest damage due to large-scale forest fires that covered more than 105,700 hectares. The amount of damage in this area alone is UAH 767.9 billion. These are unprecedented losses for Ukraine in both environmental and economic terms.
Moreover, the burning of oil products caused pollution worth UAH 172.9 billion (4 million tons of burned substances).
Other types of fires, including those caused by shelling of infrastructure, caused damage worth UAH 14.8 billion (over 3 million square meters of affected area).
It is worth noting that atmospheric emissions have a transboundary nature. This is a problem not only for Ukraine but also for neighboring countries. However, it is our country that is directly affected: rising levels of dioxin, formaldehyde, and heavy metals in the air, all of which lead to a deterioration in public health.
Water: pollution, depletion and loss of ecosystems
A separate area is the pollution of water bodies: rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. The total amount of damage is UAH 73 billion. The greatest damage was caused by fuel, oil and chemical spills. Environmentalists found out that it was almost 36 thousand tons of such substances.
Another UAH 9.8 billion was estimated for water pollution losses: more than 42.4 thousand kilograms of hazardous waste, including ammunition fragments and remnants of equipment, got into the water bodies.
Another damaging category is the illegal use of water resources. Unauthorized water use – both civilian and military – has resulted in the loss of more than 21 million cubic meters of fresh water, with losses estimated at UAH 35 billion. This is critical in the face of water shortages in the south, especially after the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant was blown up.
Land: pollution, mining, depletion
The total damage to soils and agricultural land is estimated at over UAH 1.29 trillion.
In particular
- land contamination – UAH 1.25 trillion. 23.9 million square meters of land in need of reclamation have been affected;
- soil contamination with chemicals, explosives, and heavy metals – UAH 20.9 billion in losses. More than 1.2 million square meters of land have been damaged;
- land depletion is one of the long-term threats to post-war recovery. Ukraine is already losing some of its fertile soils, and the cost of their rehabilitation may exceed several trillion hryvnias in the future.
Biodiversity: destruction of flora and fauna
War not only destroys cities, it destroys ecosystems. Damage to flora is estimated at UAH 273.4 billion. More than 28.3 thousand hectares of flora, including protected areas, forest belts and nature reserves, have been damaged.
The damage to wildlife amounted to UAH 163.4 billion. At least 75.2 thousand dead fauna have been recorded. This includes both wild species and animals that were taken from eco-parks, zoos, or died in the liberated territories.
Environmentalists also separately estimated the losses from the destruction of trees and bushes. They amounted to UAH 1.03 trillion. More than 75.1 million destroyed plants were recorded. This is not only an economic but also a climate catastrophe that will have a cumulative effect for decades.
International responsibility and environmental reparations are in order
The systematic accounting of losses by the State Environmental Inspectorate is the basis for future lawsuits against Russia in international courts. For the first time in its history, Ukraine is trying to fix the environmental cost of the war in monetary terms. Not as a secondary damage, but as one of the central areas of aggression.
This data should be taken into account not only as part of reparations, but also in Ukraine’s environmental restoration projects through trust funds, international support, and environmental monitoring technologies.
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After the end of hostilities, Ukraine will have to restore not only infrastructure but also the natural balance. This will cost billions, and most importantly, it will require political will and international solidarity.
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