«Forest is lost»: experts speak out against artificial reforestation of Kinburn

Ukrainian environmentalists say that the artificially created forests on the Kinburn Spit cannot be restored after fires.

This is stated in the article NikVesti «We must leave nature alone». Does the Kinburn Reserve have a chance to recover?»

Mykhailo Bohomaz, head of the «Forests» department at WWF, says that there is no point in returning artificial forests, as «they will be completely unsuitable in the face of climate change».

«It will be just burying money in the sand. In any scenario, it is absolutely futile and scientifically unnecessary.

The Kinburn Spit is primarily a steppe and marine ecosystem. And the natural forests that exist there will not disappear — they will regenerate themselves», explained Mykhailo Bohomaz.

This opinion was also expressed by Oleh Derkach, Honoured Conservationist of Ukraine, head of the Mykolaiv branch of the National Ecological Centre of Ukraine.

«They will not recover on their own. Will it ever come to the point where we find the funds for such a restoration programme? Imagine that in the post-war period, there was a Stalinist plan to transform nature, there were resources, there were funds. In the 60s and 70s, Kinburn was especially intensively reforested — billions of hryvnias were spent. Will we have the resources to restore these forests? I think not soon. That's why we have definitely lost artificial forests», explained Oleh Derkach.

This opinion is supported by Yevhen Kasianov, a researcher at the «Biloberezhzhia Sviatoslava». But he believes that some areas of Kinburn can still be reforested, but this should be done «very carefully» and not earlier than in 5-10 years.

«Then we will already have an idea of which areas are of greater conservation value and where there is a chance to introduce reforestation,» he explained.

The Kinburn Spit is the only occupied part of Mykolaiv region. The presence of Russian troops there is, among other things, the reason why navigation in the waters of the Mykolaiv port is impossible. It is also from Kinburn that Russians shell Ochakiv and the Kutsurub community in Mykolaiv region on a daily basis.

What is happening at Kinburn?

Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the territory of the Kinburn Spit has been occupied by the Russian military. In fact, the Russians have been shelling the Ochakiv and Kutsurub communities of Mykolaiv region for more than a year.

So far, only three settlements in Mykolaiv region, located on the territory of the Kinburn Spit, remain occupied. These are the following settlements:

• Vasylivka village. Before the full-scale war, the population was 382 people;

• Pokrovka village. Before the full-scale war, the population was 229 people;

• Pokrovske village. Before the full-scale war, the population was 177 people.

Vitalii Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, said that the liberation of the Kinburn Spit is a matter of time, «and not a very long one at that». This was also confirmed by the spokesperson for the Southern Defence Forces, Nataliia Humeniuk.

At the same time, the Russian occupiers continue to shell and mine the protected area of the Kinburn Peninsula. Wild animals are killed by mines there almost every day, and there are cases of human casualties. This is described in the article NikVesti «On the brink of destruction: How the protected Kinburn Spit is suffering from the actions of the occupiers».

Throughout the occupation, forests on the Kinburn Spit have been burning from time to time. The situation is usually complicated by the fact that the Russian occupiers did not allow rescuers to extinguish the fire, so fires can last for weeks. At the same time, as noted in the RMA, Mykolaiv region cannot help extinguish the fires there, as all fire stations and equipment that can reach there are located in the occupied territories of Kherson region.

Red Book orchids and other unique plants and animals are under threat because of the fires on Kinburn, Ombudsman Liudmyla Denisova said.

After the de-occupation, the Kinburn Spit will need time to restore nature on its own, according to «Biloberezhzhia Sviatoslava». This will happen while the demining of the protected area continues.

In October 2024, Serhii Beliakov, the mayor of the occupied villages of Pokrovka and Vasylivka on the Kinburn Peninsula, complained about the actions of the Russian military, which looted, threatened violence and reprisals against the local population.