Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Ruslan Strilets has announced "obvious progress" in implementing European integration environmental reforms, which the European Commission rated at 2 on a five-point scale in 2023.
In early 2023, Ukraine received a "1" from the European Commission, he told Delo.ua.
He emphasized that the previous assessment characterized the results of eight years of work, and the new one only covers the progress of 2022-2023. Negotiating Title 27 "Environment" is among the Top 5 chapters in terms of the number of EU legal acts to be implemented – almost 200 directives and regulations.
"European partners noted Ukraine's ability to implement the necessary legislation in the conditions of a full-scale war to agree on such "horizontal" issues as water quality, waste management, chemical safety, etc.," said Strelets.
Among the achievements of European integration in 2023, he named:
- the ratification of two amendments to the "Espo Convention", which will contribute to the improvement of the international image of Ukraine and the development of good-neighborly relations with the UN Economic Commission for Europe;
- changes to the state environmental monitoring system and a number of documents on air quality improvement;
- approval of Law No. 2804-IX "On ensuring chemical safety and management of chemical products", which will enter into force in June 2024;
- approval of the Water Strategy of Ukraine until 2050;
- ratification of the Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Additional Protocol on Liability and Compensation, which will help Ukraine restore lost biodiversity due to Russia's terrorist actions;
- joining the Minamata Convention on mercury;
- the beginning of a large-scale reform of the waste management system, etc.
It is worth noting that after the publication of the European Commission's report "Ukraine 2023", part of the eco-community called the duo insufficient progress, and the other a failure. After all, a significant part of the adopted European integration norms has a half-hearted nature, and the processes of development and adoption are systematically delayed.
It was also assumed in the eco-community that solving the issue regarding the development of the biomethane industry, in particular unblocking its export, would help Ukraine get a higher rating from the European Commission.
Earlier, EcoPolitic wrote, that experts rated the work of the Minister of Environment Protection and Natural Resources Ruslan Strilets in 2023 at 4 on a ten-point scale, in particular due to the lack of transparency and accountability of the Ministry's work, and the lack of contact with public organizations.
As EcoPolitic previously reported, on November 8, in the official report "Ukraine 2023", the European Commission assessed the country's progress in the field of environmental protection and climate change at "2" on a five-point scale – a "certain level", and in February 2023, Ukraine received "1" – "initial level of training".
