Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group condemns the plan the Ministry of the Environment presented at the ecology conference in Lugano

The "surprises" from the officials are the increase in forest cutting, reducing the responsibility of farmers-violators, access simplification to the subsoil, eventual degrading of the Ukrainian rivers and more steppes and forests plowing.

In July Switzerland in partnership with Ukraine hosted the International Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC 2022) in Lugano. The Minister of the Environment Ruslan Strilets presented projects which are a "priority" for Ukraine:

• 10 "model" national parks;
• 15 rehabilitation centers for wild animals;
• 15 wildlife crossings on animal migration routes;
• 9 seed selection centers to grow tree seedlings for forestry.

Instead, the UNCG organization criticized the suggested initiative.

"The Ministry of the Environment plans to destroy our nature as its "restoration". Do you know what "Spanish shame" is? It's when someone's doing disgraceful stuff, but you're embarrassed yourself. We suggest changing the phrase to "Lugano shame" the organization notes.

Experts explain their outrage. There are numerous points in the section "Restoration of the clean and protected environment". These are:

• Expansion of mineral and raw materials base of Ukraine ("cut" and "extract" as much as possible");
• Switching to a mechanized way of tree harvesting with the use of harvesters and forwarders (i.e. increase in logging amounts through the use of modern machines);
• Hosting educational and informational campaigns to inform agricultural producers about the importance of complying with the regime of coastal protective strips and water protection zones (this is of the type "the state won't hold violators of agrarian responsibility, but will simply tell them how bad it is");
• Improvement of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure and shortening the terms of its implementation (because the EIA procedure constantly distracts foresters, natural gas producers, and other "sustainable" businesses);
• Deregulation and simpler access to subsoil resources (no comments here);

Incredibly "nature-friendly" suggestions are noted next:

• Construction of irrigation systems covering 1 million ha and development of melioration systems (further expansion of one of the reasons why Ukrainian rivers degrade);
• Returning agricultural lands to "economical" use (expansion of croplands on behalf of grasslands and naturally afforested abandoned lands);
• Renewal of Ukrainian forests (logging old-growth forests that need "renewal");

• Construction of 3,5-gigawatt hydropower plants (everyone knows their impact);
• Development of water transport routes within inland waters (google the development of E40 water route opposed by environmentalists in at least three countries).

"We hope that enormous plans of the government will never be implemented, as it usually happens. Though, the fact that the information above is publicly available is disturbing. This case is about the money of Ukrainian allies" UNCG pointed out.