The State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) has launched a large-scale special operation, ‘Green Shield’, to tackle crimes committed by officials in the forestry sector. Cases involving hundreds of millions of hryvnias have already been reported. However, even outside this ‘programme’, a considerable number of instances of illegal logging have been uncovered. Meanwhile, the environment continues to suffer from pollution, whilst prosecutors are seizing protected land from tenant farmers who have already managed to ravage it.
EcoPolitics has compiled an overview of environmental crimes that came to light between 3 and 9 October. This report draws on publications from the State Bureau of Investigations, the Office of the Prosecutor General, regional public prosecutors’ offices and the State Environmental Inspectorate.
"Green Shield"
This week, the State Bureau of Investigations announced a special operation called ‘Green Shield’ – aimed at combating corruption in the forestry sector and illegal logging. In a series of subsequent publications, the SBI revealed details of some of the cases being investigated as part of the special operation.
A criminal organisation operated in three regions, which, in collusion with forestry officials, ‘siphoned off’ over 178 million hryvnias from a state-owned forestry enterprise. It was for this exact sum that the organisation, together with its accomplices, entered into contracts with branches of the forestry enterprise after winning tenders at auctions. On the instructions of the director of the forestry enterprise’s branch in the Vinnytsia region, who was linked to the crime, forestry officials signed certificates of completion, even though the contractors had neither the workers nor the necessary equipment. To siphon off the money, the organiser enlisted the help of around 20 sole traders. The money was converted into cash and distributed amongst those involved in the scheme. Eight accomplices have been served with notices of suspicion. Investigators are continuing to identify all those involved in the scheme.
We would like to take this opportunity to point out that state auditors have found that the practice of awarding contracts to newly established firms and ‘ghost’ sole traders is widespread throughout the State Enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’.
In the Zhytomyr region, a scheme to embezzle funds from the state-owned enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’ has been uncovered. Officials from the Baranivka Forest District of the ‘Capital Forest Office’ branch and businesspeople may have been involved in the scheme. Over a two-year period, the officials entered into contracts with sole traders for timber harvesting, but the work was actually carried out by forestry workers or even local residents. The entrepreneurs kept 17 per cent of the contract sum for themselves and handed the remainder over to the officials in cash. In this way, approximately 9 million hryvnias were channelled through the sole traders.
Джерело: Державне бюро розслідувань
Under the guise of sanitary felling in the Carpathian region, trees worth over 5 million hryvnias were illegally felled in the ‘Chornyi Lis’ nature reserve. The scheme, which was uncovered by the State Bureau of Investigation, was fairly straightforward – felling permits were simply issued without the necessary approvals and authorisations. The scheme was organised in advance by officials from the state-owned enterprise ‘Prykarpattia Military Forestry’ in collaboration with staff from the Ivano-Frankivsk Department of Forestry and Hunting.
The contracts were unlawfully extended, which allowed buyers to obtain timber at the old prices. Twelve officials from one of the branches of the state-owned enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’ and forestry enterprises in the Rivne and Volyn regions received notices of suspicion. Due to discrepancies in pricing, the state lost almost 6.9 million hryvnias.
Two officials from the Central Interregional Directorate for Forestry and Game Management are suspected of professional negligence. Despite the low density of the stands, they authorised selective felling in the Tetiiv Forest District in the Kyiv region. As a result, 448 trees were felled under felling permits issued in May and September. The losses to the state exceeded 3.3 million hryvnias.
Forest matters
A real sentence for an official over illegal logging. In the Ternopil region, a former assistant forester will be jailed for 5 years and 1 month. Prosecutors were able to prove that he organised the felling of 900 trees outside the area designated by the logging permit. The losses amounted to over 3.9 million hryvnias. In addition, he was found guilty of illegal logging due to negligence.
They were selling unaccounted-for timber at half price. Staff from the State Bureau of Investigations exposed the deputy head of the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Forestry Administration and the forester of one of the enterprises forming part of the State Enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’. As previously agreed, alongside the officially purchased timber, the buyers were supplied with logs that did not appear in any documentation. These products were sold more cheaply, for cash and, of course, outside the official till.
In the Dnipropetrovsk region, eight members of a group who illegally felled trees in the Pavlohrad district between November 2025 and April 2026 are to stand trial. The accused even include a member of the patrol police. The ‘black loggers’ managed to cause environmental damage amounting to almost 4 million hryvnias.
Джерело: Дніпропетровська обласна прокуратура
He allowed fir trees to be felled in a nature reserve – causing environmental damage amounting to over 2.5 million UAH. In the Lviv region, the acting forester, who failed to protect the ‘Hai’ Landscape Reserve from illegal felling, was notified of the charges against him. Due to his negligence, unknown individuals destroyed 28 fir trees.
Trees were felled on forestry enterprise land in collusion with an official. Eight residents of the Chernihiv region were served with notices of suspicion in connection with the illegal felling, transport and sale of timber. The damage to the environment amounted to 7.4 million hryvnias.
In the Ternopil region, employees of the state-owned enterprise ‘Forests of Ukraine’ unlawfully felled 167 trees in the ‘Yasinovets’ area. The fact is that this land does not even belong to “Forests of Ukraine”. The court ruled in favour of the prosecutors, so the state-owned enterprise must compensate for the damages amounting to 1.9 million hryvnias. However, the investigation into the two officials who entered someone else’s land with chainsaws is still ongoing.
Illegal use of subsoil resources
They were extracting sand without a special permit. In the Cherkasy region, two people were charged with illegal extraction. The sand was extracted using a dredger from the reservoir. In total, nearly 50,000 cubic metres of sand were extracted, worth over 11.6 million hryvnias. The total losses to the state exceeded 58.4 million hryvnias.
Джерело: Офіс Генерального прокурора
Environmental pollution
He organised a construction waste tip on land designated for recreational purposes. In Zaporizhzhia, the head of one of the companies was served with a notice of suspicion of land contamination causing losses of over 36 million hryvnias. This was because the remains of a demolished building were piled up on an area of over 1 hectare, the soil of which is now contaminated with substances harmful to the environment.
Джерело: Запорізька обласна прокуратура
Livestock waste – straight into the Psel River. The director of one of the companies in the Kremenchuk district is suspected of breaching water protection regulations. Due to a failure to comply with legal requirements, the waste ended up in the river, where it caused pollution and the mass death of fish. The losses exceeded 2.2 million hryvnias.
In the Kharkiv region, an investigation is underway into the suspected pollution of the Merla River. The unusual colour of the water, which may have been caused by the discharge of harmful substances, was detected through monitoring of social media.
Джерело: Харківська обласна прокуратура
Valuable land
The local village council unlawfully reclassified over 70 hectares of the ‘Tsumanska Pushcha’ National Park as municipal land for agricultural use. Prosecutors succeeded in returning these areas, valued at 8.4 million hryvnias, to the state through the courts.
The leasehold rights to 48 hectares of land, which had been granted to a businessman in the Dnipropetrovsk region, were revoked. The plot of land is in fact part of the nature reserve fund, specifically the ‘Byk River Valley’ nature reserve. However, for a long time, this valuable area, worth over 5 million hryvnias, had been used as ordinary agricultural land.
In addition, 200 hectares of land within the ‘Swan Lake’ nature reserve in the Cherkasy region were found to have been illegally leased. This valuable area, worth over 22 million hryvnias, was successfully returned to the local community.
You can read about last week’s environmental crimes here.
