Since the beginning of the Russian occupation, the territory of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve in the Kherson region has suffered catastrophic damage from fires caused by hostilities.
Huge areas of the reserve’s forest-steppe and coastal sites and its protected zones have been turned into burn scars over nearly four years. Viktoriya Plyush – the leading engineer of the department of ecological and educational work of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine – spoke about the situation in the reserve, which is located in the occupied part of the Kherson region, writes Hryvna.
Recall, the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve is located on the territory and waters of Kherson and partly Mykolaiv regions. It was established in 1927 to study and protect the natural environment, in particular mass nesting and bird migrations.
It is one of the oldest reserves in Ukraine. It includes the nationally significant ornithological reserve “Yahorlytskyi”.
Since February 24, 2022, the territory of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve has been under occupation. It is known that from fires caused by military actions, burned huge areas of the reserve.
It was also previously reported that at the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve they warn of a threat to the preservation of populations of hoofed animals due to unfavorable weather conditions and a shortage of feed.