Destruction of ecosystems, floods, pollution, energy threats: The destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine could have “unprecedented” consequences for the environment and people, several experts and defense associations estimate on Wednesday. Environment.
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ecocide
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has accused Russia of “brutal ecocide,” it is “the worst man-made environmental disaster in Europe in decades.”
The term “ecocide” was recently defined by the European Parliament as any “environmental crime that causes serious and widespread or long-lasting or irreversible damage to air, soil or water quality, or to biological diversity, ecosystem services and functions, animals or plants caused”. At the end of March, Brussels paved the way for the recognition of “ecocide” in EU law.
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Fauna and flora in danger
The first consequence, linked to the discharge of the 18 billion tons of water retained by the dam, will lead the Dnieper, the fourth longest river in Europe, to serious disruption of its ecosystems up to the coastal areas of the Black Sea, according to estimates by the Ukrainian NGO Ecoaction.
According to her, “potentially massive die-offs of aquatic organisms (fish, molluscs, crustaceans, microorganisms, aquatic vegetation)” but also of rodents, some of which are endemic or already threatened, are expected “which will lead to a worsening of the situation Water quality is affected by the decomposition of dead organisms.
Pets or animals kept in captivity are also at risk, emphasizes the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), which is already reporting a “catastrophic situation”.
“Shelters are already overwhelmed with rescue requests. In Nowa Kakhovka (…) a small zoo was completely flooded – all animals died except the swans,” says Natalia Gozak, IFAW Ukraine manager.
The vegetation will not be spared either, especially that above the dam, which “will die off due to drainage, while the downstream areas will be flooded, including steppe and forest complexes not suitable for flooding, which will lead to flooding .” Constipation and destruction,” says Ecoaction.
Several Ukrainian national parks, including the UNESCO-listed Black Sea Biosphere Reserve, are under direct threat.
pollution
In addition, massive pollution from the dumping of garbage, agrochemicals and other hazardous substances, as well as flooding and shutdowns of wastewater treatment and sewage systems are to be expected.
According to Ukrainian officials, 150 tons of motor oil spilled into the Dnieper on Tuesday, “with the risk of another 300 tons seeping away,” posing “a threat to fauna and flora.”
flooding and water scarcity
“More than 40,000 people are at risk in flooded areas,” Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriï Kostine warned on Tuesday, announcing massive evacuations.
The Kakhovka Dam also provides drinking water supply and irrigation for the southern part of Ukraine, which is already among the driest in the country. Its destruction therefore poses a major risk to the water supply of millions of people.
This lack of water could lead to desertification of certain areas, IFAW estimates.
“The decaying biomass of aquatic flora and fauna will turn into arid, even desert-like areas in the coming months,” predicts Ms. Gozak, with the result being a change in microclimate and temperatures that “will trigger a wave of new climate and aquatic migrants could.” in other regions of Ukraine and Europe”.
Threats to food and energy
The Zaporijjia nuclear power plant, occupied by the Russian army, is again weakened after the destruction of the dam, whose water is used to cool the fuel and prevent a nuclear accident.
“The system is currently cooled by water that is pumped into specially designed basins on the site. There is no short-term risk for the plant,” the French Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) reassured on Wednesday.
The fears are more of an economic nature: “The lack of cooling for the six reactors means that the plant will not be operational for the foreseeable future, resulting in a loss of around 13% of Ukraine’s electricity generation capacity,” emphasizes Malte Janssen, of the University of Sussex Business School.
The damage is also likely to affect agriculture and livestock, raising fears of a humanitarian catastrophe. Ukraine is one of the world’s largest grain suppliers.