SOIL DAMAGE AND RECOVERY IN UKRAINE: LESSONS FROM GLOBAL POST-WAR EXPERIENCES
Keywords:
agriculture, pollution, soil damage, erosion, heavy metal, oil spill, landmine
Abstract
The russian invasion of Ukraine has resulted in extensive environmental damage, significantly affecting the country’s soil quality and raising concerns about long-term agricultural sustainability and environmental health. The war has resulted in soil degradation through contamination by military operations, destruction of farmland, and disruption of natural ecosystems. The objective of the research is to evaluate the environmental consequences of the war in Ukraine, with a particular emphasis on soil degradation and the development of strategies for post-war restoration. The manuscript will entail a comprehensive review of existing literature on soil degradation and post-war environmental restoration, with a particular focus on case studies from conflict zones such as Vietnam, the Balkans, and post-Second World War Europe. Furthermore, an analysis of data from Ukrainian government agencies, environmental organizations, and international bodies will be conducted to assess the extent and nature of soil damage caused by the war. To achieve effective recovery of its soils and ecosystems, Ukraine can draw on global experiences and implement long-term strategies combining modern decontamination technologies, sustainable agricultural practices and policy reforms that promote ecological resilience. Environmental, social, and economic factors must be integrated into the country’s post-war recovery strategy. It is imperative that international cooperation and investment in environmental restoration, in conjunction with community involvement, are pursued in order to guarantee the success of these endeavours and to provide Ukraine with the support it requires in order to achieve a sustainable and resilient agricultural future. The research provides a foundation for the development of integrated strategies that leverage global lessons, thereby ensuring long-term recovery for Ukraine’s soil and agricultural systems.
References
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21. Kiernan K. (2010). Environmental degradation in karst areas of Cambodia: A legacy of war? Land Degradation and Development, 21(6), 503-519. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.988.
22. Krainiukov, O., Miroshnychenko, I., SіabrukO., & Hladkikh, Y. (2022). Effect of oil contamination on the course of changes in chernozem properties and phytotoxicity. Visnyk of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Series “Geology. Geography. Ecology"ation”, 57, 296-306. https://doi.org/10.26565/2410-7360-2022-57-22.
23. Kussul, N., Drozd, S., Yailymova, H. et l. (2023). Assessing damage to agricultural fields from military actions in Ukraine: An integrated approach using statistical indicators and machine learning. International journal of Applied earth Observation and Geoinformation, 125. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2023.103562
24. Leal, W., Fedoruk, M., & Eustachio, JHPP (2024). The environment as the first victim: The impacts of the war on the preservation areas in Ukraine. Journal of Environmental Management, 364. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121399
25. Miassar A., Abdulkarim L., & Mohammad Gazy A. (2023). A baseline survey of potentially toxic elements in the soil of north-west Syria following a decade of conflict. Environmental Science: Advances, 2(6), 886-879. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d2va00333c.
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27. Misar R., & Al-Ajmi D. (2009). War-induced soil degradation, depletion, and destruction (the case of ground fortifications in the terrestrial environment of Kuwait). Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, Vol. 3: Anthropogenic Compounds, 3U, 125-139. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-87963-3_4.
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30. Omar, S., Bhat, N.R., Shahid S.A., & A.Assem. (2005). Land and vegetation degradation in war-affected areas in the Sabah Al-Ahmad Nature Reserve of Kuwait: A case study of Umm. Ar. Rimam. Journal of Arid Environments, 62(3), 475-490. DOI: https://doi.org.10.1016/j. jaridenv.2005.01.009.
31. Patel AB, Shaikh S, Jain KR, Desai C, Madamwar D. (2020). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: sources, toxicity, and remediation approaches. Frontiers of Microbiolody, 11:562813. DOI : https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.562813.
32. Prosser, C.W., Sedivec, K.K., & Barker, W.T. (2000). Tracked vehicle effects on vegetation and soil characteristics. Journal of Range Management, 53(6), 666-670. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.2307/4003164.
33. Silveira, M.L., Comerford, N.B., Reddy, K.R., Prenger, J. & DeBusk, W.F. (2010). Influence of military land uses on soil carbon dynamics in forest ecosystems of Georgia, USA. Ecological Indicators, 10, 905-909. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2010.01.009.
34. Shaul Sh. (2017). Islamic and the Balkans terror. Islamic Terror and the Balkans, 1-218 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203788158.
35. Stadles, T., Temesi, A., &Z. Lakner (2023). Soil Chemical Pollution and Military Actions: A Bibliometric Analysis. Sustainability, 14(12). DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su14127138.
36. Terje S. (2021). Ecology and the war in Afghanistan. Routledge Library Edition: Afghanistan. 175-196.
37. Tinh P., MacKenzie R.A., et al. (2022). Distribution and drivers of Vietnam mangrove deforestation from 1995 to 2019. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 27(4). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-022-10005-w.
38. 38. Tuohy, M., Baur, J., Steinberg, G. et al (2023). Utilizing UAV-based hyperspectral imaging to detect surficial explosive ordnance. Leading Edge, 42(2), 98-102. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.1190/tle42020098.1
39. Vieira GAL, Magrini M.J., Bonugli-Santos R.C., Rodrigues M.V.N., Sette L.D. (2018). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons degradation by marine-derived basidiomycetes: optimization of the degradation process. Brazilian Journal of Microbiology, 49(4), 749-756. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.bjm.2018.04.007.
40. Whitecotton, R.C.A., David, M.B., Darmody, R.Q. & Price, D.L. (2000). Impact of foot traffic from military training on soil and vegetation properties. Environmental Management, 26(6), 697-706. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s002670002224.
41. World economic outlook: A rocky recovery. Retrieved from: https://www.imf.org/en/ Publications/WEO/Issues/2023/04/11/world-economic-outlook-april-2023.
2. Almohamad, H. (2020). Northern Al-Kabeer River in Syria Using the RUSLE Model. Waterb 12(12). DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/w12123323.
3. Altoff, P.S.b &Thien, S.J. (2005). Impact of M1A1 main battle tank disturbance on soil quality, invertebrates, and vegetation characteristics. Journal of Terramechanics, 42, 159-176. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jterra.2004.10.014.
4. Assessing the environmental impacts of the war in Ukraine. WWF. Retrieved from: https://wwfcee.org/our-offices/ukraine/assessing-the-environmental-impacts-of-the-war-in-ukraine.
5. Baniasadi, M., Mousavi, S.M. (2018). A Comprehensive Review on the Bioremediation of Oil Spills. In: Kumar, V., Kumar, M., Prasad, R. (eds) Microbial Action on Hydrocarbons. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1840-5_10.
6. Baselt, I., Skejic, A., Zindovic, B., & Bender, J. (2023). Geologically-Driven Migration of Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War – A Feature Focusing on the Western Balkans. Geoscience, 13(6). DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13060178
7. Blinkov, I., Kostadinov, S., Mincev, I., & Petrovic, A. (2022). Soil Erosion and Torrent Control in Western Balkan Countries. In: Li, R., Napier, T.L., El-Swaify, S.A., Sabir, M., Rienzi, E. (eds) Global Degradation of Soil and Water Resources. Springer, Singapore. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7916-2_28.
8. Broomandi, P., Guney, M., Kim, J.R., & Karaca, F. (2020). Soil contamination in areas impacted by military activities. Sustainability, 12(21). 900 p. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ su12219002.
9. Bulba, I., Drobitko, A., Zadorozhnii, Yu. & O. Pismennyi (2024). Identification and monitoring of agricultural land contaminated by military operations. Scientific Horizons, 27(7), 107-117. DOI: https://doi.org/10.48077/scihor7.2024.107.
10. DeBusk, W.F., Skulnick, J.P. Prenger, J.P., & Reddy, K.R. (2005). Response of soil organic carbon dynamics to disturbance from military training. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 60(4), 163-171. Retrieved from: https://www.jswconline. org/content/60/4/163.short
11. De Costa, J.P., Silva, A.L., Barcelo, D., Rocha-Santos, T. & Duarte, A. (2023). Threats to sustainability in face of post-pandemic scenarios and the war in Ukraine. Science of the Total Environment, 892. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164509.
12. Eide, A.H. (2010). Community-Based Rehabilitation in Post-conflict and Emergency Situations. In: Martz, E. (eds.) Trauma Rehabilitation After War and Conflict. Springer, New York, NY. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-5722-1_5.
13. European Commission: Joint Research Centre, Belis, C., Djatkov, D., Lettieri, T., & Jones, A. (2022) Status of environment and climate in the Western Balkans – Benchmarking the accession process progress on environment, Publications Office of the European Union. Retrieved from: https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2760/294516.
14. Jameel, R. A., Mohammed, Y.A., Bilal, S.a., & Khalid, A.(2022). The environmental, economic, and social development impact of desertification in Iraq: a review on desertification control measures and mitigation strategies. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 194(6). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10102-y.
15. Hamad, A-M., Anyi N. & Chuxia L. (2023). Strategies for cost-effective remediation of widespread oil-contaminated soils in Kuwait, an environmental legacy of the first Gulf War. Journal of Environmental Management, 344. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118601.
16. Filho, W.L., Eustachio, J.H.P.P., Fedoruk, M. & T. Lisovska (2024). War in Ukraine: An overview of environmental impacts and consequences for human health. Frontiers in Sustainable Resource Management, 3. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fsrma.2024.1423444.
17. Hryhorczuk, D., Levy, B.S., & Prodanchuk, M. (2024). The environmental health impacts of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 19(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12995-023-00398-y.
18. Garten, Jr., C.T., Ashwood, T.L., & Dale, V.H. (2003). Effect of military training on indicators of soil quality at Fort Benning, Georgia. Ecological Indicators, 3(3), 171-179. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-160X(03)00041-4.
19. Gleditsch, N.P. (2015). Armed Conflict and the Environment. In: Nils Petter Gleditsch: Pioneer in the Analysis of War and Peace. Springer Briefs on Pioneers in Science and Practice, 29. Springer, Cham. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03820-9_6.
20. Kapovic Solomun M., Ferreira C.S.S., et al. (2021). Understanding the role of policy frameworks in developing land degradation in stakeholders perception from a post-conflict perspective in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Land Degradation and Development, 32(12), 3393-3402. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.3744.
21. Kiernan K. (2010). Environmental degradation in karst areas of Cambodia: A legacy of war? Land Degradation and Development, 21(6), 503-519. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.988.
22. Krainiukov, O., Miroshnychenko, I., SіabrukO., & Hladkikh, Y. (2022). Effect of oil contamination on the course of changes in chernozem properties and phytotoxicity. Visnyk of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Series “Geology. Geography. Ecology"ation”, 57, 296-306. https://doi.org/10.26565/2410-7360-2022-57-22.
23. Kussul, N., Drozd, S., Yailymova, H. et l. (2023). Assessing damage to agricultural fields from military actions in Ukraine: An integrated approach using statistical indicators and machine learning. International journal of Applied earth Observation and Geoinformation, 125. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2023.103562
24. Leal, W., Fedoruk, M., & Eustachio, JHPP (2024). The environment as the first victim: The impacts of the war on the preservation areas in Ukraine. Journal of Environmental Management, 364. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121399
25. Miassar A., Abdulkarim L., & Mohammad Gazy A. (2023). A baseline survey of potentially toxic elements in the soil of north-west Syria following a decade of conflict. Environmental Science: Advances, 2(6), 886-879. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d2va00333c.
26. Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine. Official web-page. Retrieved from: https://mepr.gov.ua/.
27. Misar R., & Al-Ajmi D. (2009). War-induced soil degradation, depletion, and destruction (the case of ground fortifications in the terrestrial environment of Kuwait). Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, Vol. 3: Anthropogenic Compounds, 3U, 125-139. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-87963-3_4.
28. Moya, K. (2016). Global agriculture and the challenge of sustainability. In: Challenging Post-conflict Environments: Sustainable Agriculture, 7-18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/978 1315571201-9.
29. Nguyen, T.L., Dang, H.T., Koekkoek, J., Braster, M., Parsons, J.R., Brouwer, A., De Boer, T., & R. J. Van Spanning. (2021). Species and Metabolic Pathways Involved in Bioremediation of Vietnamese Soil From Bien Hoa Airbase Contaminated With Herbicides. Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, (3). DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2021.692018.
30. Omar, S., Bhat, N.R., Shahid S.A., & A.Assem. (2005). Land and vegetation degradation in war-affected areas in the Sabah Al-Ahmad Nature Reserve of Kuwait: A case study of Umm. Ar. Rimam. Journal of Arid Environments, 62(3), 475-490. DOI: https://doi.org.10.1016/j. jaridenv.2005.01.009.
31. Patel AB, Shaikh S, Jain KR, Desai C, Madamwar D. (2020). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: sources, toxicity, and remediation approaches. Frontiers of Microbiolody, 11:562813. DOI : https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.562813.
32. Prosser, C.W., Sedivec, K.K., & Barker, W.T. (2000). Tracked vehicle effects on vegetation and soil characteristics. Journal of Range Management, 53(6), 666-670. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.2307/4003164.
33. Silveira, M.L., Comerford, N.B., Reddy, K.R., Prenger, J. & DeBusk, W.F. (2010). Influence of military land uses on soil carbon dynamics in forest ecosystems of Georgia, USA. Ecological Indicators, 10, 905-909. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2010.01.009.
34. Shaul Sh. (2017). Islamic and the Balkans terror. Islamic Terror and the Balkans, 1-218 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203788158.
35. Stadles, T., Temesi, A., &Z. Lakner (2023). Soil Chemical Pollution and Military Actions: A Bibliometric Analysis. Sustainability, 14(12). DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su14127138.
36. Terje S. (2021). Ecology and the war in Afghanistan. Routledge Library Edition: Afghanistan. 175-196.
37. Tinh P., MacKenzie R.A., et al. (2022). Distribution and drivers of Vietnam mangrove deforestation from 1995 to 2019. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 27(4). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-022-10005-w.
38. 38. Tuohy, M., Baur, J., Steinberg, G. et al (2023). Utilizing UAV-based hyperspectral imaging to detect surficial explosive ordnance. Leading Edge, 42(2), 98-102. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.1190/tle42020098.1
39. Vieira GAL, Magrini M.J., Bonugli-Santos R.C., Rodrigues M.V.N., Sette L.D. (2018). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons degradation by marine-derived basidiomycetes: optimization of the degradation process. Brazilian Journal of Microbiology, 49(4), 749-756. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.bjm.2018.04.007.
40. Whitecotton, R.C.A., David, M.B., Darmody, R.Q. & Price, D.L. (2000). Impact of foot traffic from military training on soil and vegetation properties. Environmental Management, 26(6), 697-706. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s002670002224.
41. World economic outlook: A rocky recovery. Retrieved from: https://www.imf.org/en/ Publications/WEO/Issues/2023/04/11/world-economic-outlook-april-2023.
Published
2024-12-29
How to Cite
Didenko, N. (2024). SOIL DAMAGE AND RECOVERY IN UKRAINE: LESSONS FROM GLOBAL POST-WAR EXPERIENCES. Land Reclamation and Water Management, (2), 79 - 86. https://doi.org/10.31073/mivg202402-391
Section
Articles
