Project team at Ukraine 30: Ecology forum

The team of the Regional demonstration project on coordinated management of ODS and POP disposal participated in Ukraine 30: Ecology all-Ukrainian forum held on June 7–9, 2021.

The forum is one of 30 weekly forums organized under the auspices of the President of Ukraine on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the independence of the country and dedicated to its vital problems.

The President Volodymyr Zelensky contributed personally to the forum.

The representatives of the public authorities made some promising statements related to the implementation prospects of the regional demonstration project.

Roman Abramovskyi, Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, spoke about the expected ambitious reform concerning environment protection, mitigation of climate change, reduction of industrial pollution, and waste management.

Iryna Stavchuk, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine for European Integration, drew attention to the importance of stopping the growth of greenhouse gas emissions in the next 10 years, and then terminating them, i.e. achieving climate neutrality, within 20 years. The ministry cooperates with other public authorities and businesses in developing a relevant regulatory framework and conducting respective activities, correspondingly.

Ruslan Strilets, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, stressed the need for new regulations and a framework law to lay the groundwork for the adoption of the Waste framework directive 2008/98/EC. He introduced EcoSystem online platform designated for the issue of transboundary waste movement licenses, waste licenses, felling permissions, timber certificates, waste declarations, special water use permissions, etc.

Osnat Lubrani, UN Resident Coordinator in Ukraine, Torsten Vellert, Head of the Energy and Environment Section of the European Commission Support Group for Ukraine, representatives of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Cabinet of Ministers, Verkhovna Rada, international and affluent non-governmental organizations, community boards, and international experts discussed crucial challenges that all the countries, governments and citizens, i.e. all the mankind, are facing today.

Oleh Bondarenko, Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Environmental Policy and Nature Management, spoke that the Committee focused on initiating laws that might change approaches to production operation and establish simple and clear rules aimed at preventing environmental pollution. Thus, in addition to draft law No. 2207-1д “On waste management”, the Committee develops:

draft law No. 4167 “On prevention, reduction and control of industrial pollution” to introduce best available technologies and management techniques to alleviate the environmental load;
draft law No. 5339 “On amendments to certain laws of Ukraine concerning the improvement of the air pollution regulation mechanism” to introduce mandatory use of automated pollutant control system, evaluation of air quality, and assessment of air pollution impact on the people health and life.

The Committee expects that after successfully overcoming resistance to these draft laws through joint efforts of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, President, and Verkhovna Rada, they would be adopted already by late July.

Oleksandr Marikovskyi, Deputy Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Environmental Policy and Nature Management, revealed some new information about draft law No. 2207-1д “On waste management”:

— The Committee has been working on the draft law for half a year already. Our aim is to conduct the framework reform at the possible highest level to ensure the adoption of several European directives, for example, 98, 75, 31, in accordance with the Association Agreement. The Verkhovna Rada understands the urgency of the issue, and the President keeps it under his personal control, as stated in decree No. 111/2021 “On the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine of March 23, 2021 “On the environmental challenges and threats to the national security of Ukraine and relevant priority manageability measures.” It is important to understand that aligning the positions implies reaching the equilibrium between the status quo and the new economic sector. The equilibrium between the centralized Ukraine of the past and the decentralized one which has been founded and built nowadays. So the local government must bear additional responsibility and at the same time enable the business to act within the framework of the law because the business is a driver for the economic processes.

Olena Kryvoruchkina, a member of the Verkhovna Rada, spoke about draft law No. 2207-1д and the financial and economic tools of the waste management reform, including updating the tax and fee system and environmental insurance.

Svitlana Berzina, Head of the Public Committee within the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, President of Living Planet non-governmental organization, called for promoting sustainable consumption and production, spoke about successes in influencing the market through public procurement non-monetary factors and solving severe environmental problems through the development of appropriate standards and regulations. She pointed to the required reform of the tax and fee system to motivate conscientious business and impose restrictions on violators.

Gabriel Sauer, Project Director of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Ukraine, presented best available technologies to prevent industrial pollution and spoke about the benefits of the online issue of permits under draft law No. 4167 “On prevention, reduction and control of industrial pollution” in light of the fight against corruption.

The sidelines of the forum saw debates over issues of special importance for the project: accelerating update of the legal and regulatory framework in the area of hazardous and electric and electronic waste management, introducing compensation mechanisms for conscientious market actors, joint efforts to raise awareness of the project activities at the local level, improving the communication with the project partners and stakeholders at the national level, creating the working group to enhance the project capacity.

Tetyana Tymochko, a well-known environmental activist, Head of the All-Ukrainian Environmental League, emphasized that a systematic approach was required for reforming in the environmental monitoring and control area, to provide the polluters with clear rules enabling the deliberate transition to responsible activity, reduction of pertinent industrial pollution, and compliance with environmental laws without corruption at the local level.

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