Upstream, our experts recorded the operation of logging equipment directly in the riverbed and coastal zone, which led to:
- destruction of the riverbed;
- soil erosion;
- water pollution;
- massive washout of soil into the watercourse;
- destruction of habitats.
Siltation blocks the access of oxygen to all living creatures at the bottom of the reservoir, covers the rocky bottom where invertebrates live, and kills fish and their eggs. This is especially dangerous during the spawning period.
Rare and valuable fish species are under threat. This area is the habitat of Red Book species:
- turopean grayling (Thymallus thymallus),
- common barbel (Barbus barbus),
- and also the spawning ground of brown trout (Salmo trutta), which officially lasts from October 10 to March 1. During this period, there is a strict ban on catching trout (the fine is UAH 7,225 per fish). But silting up the water causes no less harm than poaching: the caviar dies, and the population cannot recover.
It is important to understand:
The Gurkalo waterfall is a hydrological monument of local importance, and the Velyka Richka River flows through the territory of the Skoliv Beskydy National Nature Park. Any actions that change the natural water regime or channel are prohibited here.
The destruction of protected rivers is not an “economic activity”, but damage to nature, for which responsibility must be taken.
Who has the right to record such a violation and hold the guilty accountable?
We have appealed to:
- the State Ecological Inspectorate to record and hold accountable under Art. 59 and also Art. 80 of the Water Code of Ukraine;
- to the State Protection Service of the Skolivskie Beskydy National Park – for recording and holding accountable for Part 2 of Article 90 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (deterioration, destruction of the habitat (growth) of animals and plants, species of which are listed in the Red Book of Ukraine)
- to the Police to check whether the actions committed do not constitute criminally punishable acts
- to the local community, whether environmental standards and regulations are observed within its territories, Article 152 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
To speed up the response, we submitted the appeal not only to the email addresses of these services, but also through the electronic appeal of the Cabinet of Ministers (hotline). This allowed us to reach other parties responsible for detecting violations – the State Agency of Forest Resources, the Fish Protection Patrol and the territorial community.
And you can learn more about the problem of erosion in the Carpathians by watching our short documentary film “The Music of the Mountains That Fades Away”. The film is available on the YouTube channel of the NGO “Danube-Carpathian Program” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7a5_gYzLMA
