Russia’s war against Ukraine is creating a range of direct and indirect threats to its water resources and is reducing the government’s capacity to monitor and respond to them. These threats are also emerging at a time where Ukraine’s water resources are under increasing pressure from the climate crisis.

Water management and governance in Ukraine is dispersed across a range of institutions and actors. Many of these have been impacted by the war. For example, river monitoring stations and facilities have been damaged or rendered inaccessible.

The destructive impact of military actions in Ukraine on soil quality, starting from 2014 to the present, is complex and negatively affects the ecological stability of the region. The prolonged warfare leads to the physical destruction of the soil cover due to explosions from shells, mines, and other ammunition, which create craters, damage the surface, and alter the natural soil structure. This disrupts soil fertility, reduces its water retention capacity, and leads to active erosion processes.

Since 2009, there has been renewed international interest in efforts to enhance the weak legal framework intended to protect the environment in relation to armed conflicts (PERAC). The topic is currently under consideration by the UN’s International Law Commission, it is being addressed by the International Committee of the Red Cross, and has also been the feature of resolutions at the UN Environment Assembly.