Ecodozor: environmental consequences and risks of the fighting in Ukraine

The development and maintenance of the information system is supported by Zoï Environment Network (Switzerland), the OSCE Project Coordinator in Ukraine, the REACH humanitarian initiative, and the UN Environment Programme.

The system is under development, data are added and updated on a regular basis. The contents are based on media reports supplemented by information from the authorities, academia, the civil society and other sources. Developers and partners strive to ensure the quality and completeness of information, but are not responsible for the accuracy of the original data presented in the system.

While the accuracy of data is verified when they are entered into the information system, the nature and scale of the impact on the environment must be needs to be eventually ascertained through field-based site investigation, environmental sampling and analysis. The system therefore also serves as a tracking tool to assist in the prioritizations of future field-based assessments.

Data sources

• Industrial facilities and critical infrastructure
  The map shows only those facilities where operations were disrupted as of February 2022 (see "Disruption of industrial facilities, critical infrastructure and settlements" section). Locations were identified using remote sensing data, and are shown to reflect approximate locations of the facilities.
• Disruption of industrial facilities, critical infrastructure and settlements
  Information about the disruption of critical infrastructure and settlements is taken from public sources (reports of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reports of central and local authorities, media reports, etc.) for the period from February 2022. When forming the information base, experts carry out an initial analysis and selection of information resources.
• Environmental Risks
  Expert assessment is used to categorize and assess environmental risks of incidents at industrial facilities and critical infrastructure. Assigned levels of risk take into account the type of industrial or other activities, the nature and location of incidents and other factors. Specific risks to air, surface and ground water, soil, waste generation and human health are assessed for each incident based on the type of facility affected and the nature of the incident. The risks of toxic release from incidents involving physical damage to or demolition of facilities are assessed based on the likely presence of toxic substances that are most common for particular facilities according to UNEP/OCHA Flash Environmental Assessment Tool. Some of the information from FEAT has been modified to reflect Ukrainian conditions and operating practices.
• Damage to areas
  The potential damage from armed hostilities is assessed for each area by its past or present proximity to the front line, the total length of time the areas have been near the front line and the proximity to locations of known shelling. The closer to the front line, the longer the period and the more shelling recorded around, the more likely it is that damage to land, nature and infrastructure can be expected in a particular area.
• Natural protected areas
  Information on protected sites is taken from the ProtectedPlanet UNEP-WCMC database.
• Forest fires
  Spatial and temporal analysis of forest fires was conducted using remote sensing by the Regional Eastern European Fire Monitoring Center.
• Baseline layers
  Baseline layers are derived from vector cartographic data with an open OpenStreetMap license that can be freely used for non-commercial purposes. In addition, the information system uses satellite data from Microsoft Bing.