Councillors in Yelanets have postponed the issue of planning the water supply networks

In Yelanets, councillors did not support the launch of the design work for water supply networks to the settlement. Photo from Facebook

Councillors on the Yelanets Village Council did not support the consideration of the issue regarding the preparation of design and cost estimate documentation for the construction of a centralised water supply network in Yelanets. This involves supplying water to the settlement as part of the main water pipeline project, for which the state has already allocated over 237 million hryvnias.

The matter was considered during a session of the Yelanets Village Council.

Prior to this, on 26 August, members of the Mykolaiv Regional Council recommended that the Yelanets community set aside approximately 1.5 million hryvnias for the preparation of design and cost estimate documentation for the internal water supply networks. It was noted at the time that the state was prepared to fund the construction of the main section of the water supply system, but the community would need to provide the networks through which water would be supplied directly to the settlement.

The project envisages supplying water from the Sofiivka Reservoir. According to representatives of the regional water resources office, this is intended to serve as an alternative to groundwater, whose reserves in the area are dwindling.

During a session of the Yelanets Town Council, Tetiana Demchynko, a member of the Mykolaiv Regional Council, emphasised that the issue had already been discussed at regional level and requested that it be included on the agenda of the Yelanets Town Council session.

Anatolii Hryshchenko, Head of the Department of Water Relations and Basin Co-operation at the Regional Water Resources Office in Mykolaiv Oblast, explained that the design for the entire water supply system was drawn up back in 2021 and revised in 2023. According to him, around 3.8 million hryvnias have already been spent on the project. He also stated that there is effectively no alternative to groundwater for Yelanets.

«The project documentation has now been drawn up; it has undergone expert review twice and has been approved. In other words, there is no turning back. Some people might think there will be artesian wells, but unfortunately, this is not a viable option for the Yelanets, Arbuzynka and Bratske districts. This is because the area is underlain by crystalline rocks and granite. There is no groundwater here,» says Anatolii Hryshchenko.

At the same time, during the discussion, councillors failed to reach agreement on the necessity and cost of the design work. In particular, they disagreed on exactly which settlements and streets the network should cover.

The councillors also questioned the cost estimates for the design work. Different figures were quoted at various points during the meetings.

«One day they put 50, then they said five, and now they’re saying no. Well, what sort of calculations are these? Who’s doing them?» remarked one of the councillors.

During the vote, only three councillors supported the proposal to include the issue of drawing up the design and cost estimate documentation on the agenda. The motion did not secure the required number of votes.

At the same time, the councillors supported the proposal to further examine the issue at meetings of the standing committees.

It should be recalled that in April 2026, it emerged that the environmental committee of the Mykolaiv Regional Council was once again planning to visit the Yelanets community — this time due to neglected wells, a bridge and a polluted river. At the time, it was pointed out that back in March 2026, the committee had already inspected the condition of the bridge over the Hromoklia River in the village of Vozsiatske and the weirs, and had described the bridge’s condition as critical. It transpired that neither the bridge nor the wells in the community were on anyone’s books.