The desire to make money illegally from felling trees, harvesting aquatic biological resources or exploiting mineral resources continues to cause millions in damage to Ukraine’s natural environment. However, there is also simple negligence, which leads to the lawless activities of ‘black’ loggers or environmental pollution.
EcoPolitic has analysed information on environmental offences published between 13 and 19 June. This digest draws on publications from the State Bureau of Investigations, the Office of the Prosecutor General and regional prosecutors’ offices, and the State Environmental Inspectorate.
Tree felling
A large-scale scheme to legalise and export timber worth over 147 million hryvnias. The State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) uncovered a scheme through which nearly 14,900 cubic metres of oak timber of unknown origin were sold abroad. At the heart of this scheme was the director of one of the timber-using enterprises. In reality, no trees were felled, but fictitious data on the felling and sale of oak logs were entered into the electronic system. This provided the basis for issuing consignment notes and creating the appearance of lawful clearance of the goods. From there, it was a simple matter of obtaining a certificate of origin and exporting the timber abroad. Over 110 individuals and legal entities took advantage of this scheme.
More than UAH 83 million in damages resulted from negligence that led to the industrial-scale destruction of trees on protected lands. The court ordered State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine" to pay a colossal sum for damages caused by unauthorized logging in the Hutsulshchyna National Nature Park in Ivano-Frankivsk Region. Back in the fall of 2024, 20 locations with criminally deforested sites were discovered, where stumps were masked with clay and branches. Nearly 740 trees were destroyed overall, mainly spruce, juniper, and beech. The "Carpathian Forest Office" branch of State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine" is the legal successor of the previous forest user – "Kuty Forestry". It was subordinate to this entity that the Kosmatske forestry was managed, which lacked proper protection, resulting in damage to the forest fund.
Source: Office of the Prosecutor General
Deforestation amounting to UAH 11.4 million due to official negligence. In Ivano-Frankivsk Region, an official of "Raiagrolis" was served notice of suspicion. While temporarily acting as a forest ranger, 125 trees of various species were destroyed in the Nyzhniy Berezivske forestry under his supervision. Prosecutors suspect the official of improper performance of his duties, which included the protection of forest resources.
Source: Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Prosecutor's Office
Permission to fell trees in areas where it is prohibited. The former director of the state-owned enterprise ‘Zolochiv Forestry’ and his first deputy are under suspicion. Knowing full well that they were committing a crime, they provided documents that served as the basis for the illegal felling of trees. The total damage caused by the officials’ actions exceeds 5.3 million hryvnias. In total, nearly 1,200 trees were felled.
Source: State Bureau of Investigation
In Chernivtsi region, environmental inspectors recorded large-scale illegal logging. According to calculations, environmental damage amounted to almost UAH 6.2 million. All collected materials from the DEI of the Carpathian District have been handed over to law enforcement agencies.
Source: State Environmental Inspectorate of the Carpathian District
A group of “black” loggers was exposed in the Dnipropetrovsk region. The suspects, during 2025–2026, destroyed trees in the shelterbelts of Pavlohrad and Synelnykiv districts. Their motive was profit – they cut, processed, and sold. The state suffered damages totaling UAH 700,000. During the searches, saws, equipment for processing, and pellet production equipment were seized.
Source: Dnipropetrovsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office
Illegal use of subsoil resources
Unauthorized extraction of sand mixture causing environmental damage of over UAH 45 million. State environmental inspectors detected this violation right during a routine inspection in Kamin-Kashyrska territorial community. The extraction was carried out on reserve lands, and the volume of the extracted mixture exceeded 41,000 m3.
Source: State Environmental Inspectorate in Volyn region
Struggle for valuable land
A forest tract with an area of 48 ha changed ownership. Previously, the land came under the control of the Oster City Council, creating a risk of alienation. However, the court accepted the prosecutor’s arguments and returned the forestry-designated lands to state ownership through the Chernihiv Regional Council.
In Lviv region, over 53 ha of water fund land was returned to the community. As it turned out, back in 2022 these plots were illegally leased out without an auction. The reason – the presence of several facilities belonging to the tenant, even though the facilities themselves were 530,000 m2 smaller than the allocated areas.
Source: Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office
The inaction of the Cherkasy Regional Council had long posed a threat to the preservation of the ecosystem of the ‘Borovychok’ Landscape Reserve. Without the status of a nature reserve, 85 hectares of the area were at risk of being used for purposes other than those intended. However, the court ruled in favour of the prosecutors, ordering the regional council to comply with the decision of the Regional State Administration.
Poaching
Caught nearly 900 crayfish during the closed season. A resident of Voznesensk in the Mykolaiv region is to stand trial for carrying out illegal underwater fishing in the autumn of 2025. Equipped with a wetsuit, flippers, a torch and mesh bags, the man caused damage to the state amounting to nearly 3 million hryvnias. The reason was fishing during the spawning ban period.
Environmental pollution
Agricultural land has been turned into a tip for livestock waste. For half a year, one of the meat-processing plants in the Chernivtsi region dumped bio-waste on land not designated for this purpose. As a result, soil contamination and environmental damage amounting to nearly 1 million hryvnias occurred. As the enterprise breached environmental regulations by failing to send animal remains for processing and disposal, the head of the production department at the facility has been placed under suspicion. He faces up to five years’ imprisonment.
Джерело: Чернівецька обласна прокуратура
You can find out how nature was harmed last week by following the link.
