Russians committed planned ecocide and are destroying the forests of southern Ukraine

Distraction of the Kakhovska HPP dam demolishes environmental security and maintaining the ecological balance of southern Ukraine. NGO ForestCom evaluates ecological losses from flooding of Kherson region based on satellite images.

In connection with the explosion of the Kakhovskaya HPP dam, Ukraine may lose downstream floodplain forests, including in the Nizhny Dnipro National Nature Park, due to excessive flooding as a result of a sudden change in the hydrological regime. The man-made forests of the Kherson region in the so-called sand arenas, for example, the protective forests of the Oleshkiv sands, are also negatively affected. In addition, forest and other ecosystems located upstream and dependent on the water level formed by the reservoir will be affected. The large surface of the water body influenced the formation of a specific microclimate, which contributed to the creation of steppe agroforestry. The development of forest ecosystems (including field protection forest belts) in the steppe conditions of the extreme south of Ukraine significantly affects the increase in the yield of agricultural crops, not to mention the critical impact of irrigation itself for the farming. A sharp change in the hydrological regime will also have a negative impact on the production of the entire spectrum of ecosystem services, which ensure the well-being of local rural communities and were the habitat of many organisms. Moreover, it destroys the existing built infrastructure and traditional farming culture.

In order to assess the loss of forest cover, the NGO “ForestCom” used satellite images by applying various indices that characterize the intensity of the displayed vegetation. Thus, the processing of images to determine the areas of flooded territories has some features. When areas are completely flooded, changes in land cover can be detected and such areas can be automatically identified. However, for areas covered by forest vegetation or structures, only visual analysis can often be applied.

We use PlanetScope images with a resolution of 3 m obtained from the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences to identify the locations of flooding caused by the explosion of the Kakhovska HPP (Fig. 1).

 

Fig. 1. Kakhovska HPP dam on satellite images:

A) before detonation (according to the materials of Google Hybrid),

B) after detonation (based on PlanetScope materials (combination of visible spectrum channels)),

C) after detonation (based on PlanetScope materials (a combination of channels using the infrared spectrum channel))

The presented picture taken on June 6, 2023 shows damage to the dam, as well as the spread of the nearest flooded areas. Since there is tall tree vegetation and buildings on the territory, the detection of flood boundaries is carried out visually, using the infrared channel of the shooting spectrum (Fig. 2).

 

Fig. 2. A fragment of the flooded territory in the first hours after the destruction of the dam on PlanetScope satellite images (using the infrared recording channel). Visually identified boundaries of flooding are marked in blue

The photo shows the limits of flooding in the first hours after the dam was destroyed.

NGO “ForestCom,” together with partners from the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences continues satellite monitoring of the affected areas in order to assess the loss of forest ecosystems.

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