At its meeting on Wednesday, October 8, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will consider draft law No. 13174 “On the protection of land rights of owners of real estate destroyed as a result of hostilities.”
This was reported by the public organization “Golka.”
Bill No. 13174 has already passed its first reading and is being prepared for consideration in the second. Among other things, it provides for simplified obtaining of permits for the construction of infrastructure facilities, in particular in the Carpathians.
What the bill proposes
1) Protection of the rights of owners of land plots on which real estate objects were destroyed as a result of hostilities.
2) Transfer of state or communal land plots on which destroyed objects stood may be transferred to former owners without land auctions.
3) Free transfer of land plots during the period of martial law.
4) Transfer, lease, or change of the intended use of land plots during the period of martial law and for 5 years after its completion. This will be carried out without the mandatory development of urban planning documentation.
5) Preservation of the intended use of land plots that corresponded to the destroyed object.
However, according to the international public organization Green Peace, this bill will contribute to the mass construction of wind farms in the Carpathians.
According to representatives of the organization, if this amendment comes into force during the court hearings in the case of Polonyna Runa (Zakarpattia region), the developer would have every right to continue the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure. If the court's conclusion is positive, in particular, to continue destroying the highlands of the Carpathians.
Environmentalists noted that construction on Polonyna Runa, which is awaiting the conclusion of the environmental impact assessment procedure, will be resumed until the court case is completed. After all, it was suspended due to administrative proceedings.
Environmental activists added that the construction of foundations for wind turbines on Runa continues, primarily due to the position of the State Inspection of Architecture and Urban Planning of Ukraine and the State Environmental Inspection. In their opinion, the foundations of wind generators are separate structures that are not related to wind turbines and do not require an EIA.
“This amendment creates even more threats and gives free rein to unscrupulous developers,” Greenpeace said.
Greenpeace also stressed that not only Polonyna Runa, but also the entire Carpathian highlands could become silent victims of the adoption of the bill with such an amendment.
As EcoPolitics wrote in July, the Ukrainian parliament will consider bill No. 13174, one of the amendments to which is an attempt to circumvent the requirement to suspend the procedure for obtaining an environmental impact assessment (EIA) in the presence of legal proceedings.
