About the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine for the Period up to 2030
(Verkhovna Rada (BBR) Bulletin, 2019, No 16, Art. 70)
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine decrees:
I. To approve the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine until 2030 (attached).
II. final provisions
1. This Law shall enter into force on the day following its publication and shall enter into force on 1 January 2020.
2. From the day this Law enters into force, the Law of Ukraine “On the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine for the Period until 2020” shall be repealed (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, 2011, No. 26, Art. 218).
3. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine shall, within six months from the day this Law enters into force:
to develop and approve the National Environmental Action Plan;
to prepare a report on the implementation of the Law of Ukraine “On the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine until 2020” and submit it to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
| President of Ukraine | P. Poroshenko |
| Kyiv , February 28, 2019 № 2697-VIII |
| APPROVED by the Law of Ukraine of February 28, 2019 № 2697-VIII |
The main principles (strategy) of the
state environmental policy of Ukraine for the period up to 2030
I. Current problems and current state of the environment in Ukraine
The processes of globalization and social transformation have made environmental conservation a priority, and therefore require urgent action by Ukraine. For a long time the economic development of the country was accompanied by unbalanced exploitation of natural resources, low priority of environmental issues, which made it impossible to achieve balanced (sustainable) development.
The root causes of Ukraine’s environmental problems are:
subordination of environmental priorities to economic feasibility; failure to take into account environmental impacts in legislative and regulatory acts, in particular in decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and other executive bodies;
the predominance of resource- and energy-intensive industries in the structure of the economy with a largely negative impact on the environment, which is exacerbated by the lack of regulation in the transition to market conditions;
physical and moral deterioration of fixed assets in all sectors of the national economy;
inefficient public administration system in the field of environmental protection and regulation of the use of natural resources, in particular the inconsistency of actions of central and local executive authorities and local self-government bodies, unsatisfactory state of the state environmental monitoring system;
low level of understanding in society of environmental priorities and benefits of balanced (sustainable) development, imperfection of the environmental education and education system;
unsatisfactory level of compliance with environmental legislation and environmental rights and responsibilities of citizens;
unsatisfactory control over compliance with environmental legislation and failure to ensure the inevitability of liability for its violation;
insufficient funding from state and local budgets for environmental measures, funding such measures on a residual basis.
Implementation of ecosystem approach in sectoral policy and improvement of integrated environmental management system
The introduction of environmentally safe, resource- and energy-saving technologies, the development of renewable energy sources, intangible environmental management are going haphazardly and too slowly. In the context of rising gas prices, significant systematic measures should be taken to improve energy efficiency, decarbonize the energy sector and develop renewable energy sources.
In the field of security and defense, the issue of access to the facilities of the military-defense industrial complex should be resolved in order to carry out appropriate supervision and control of the observance of environmental protection legislation at these objects, prevention of pollution of surface and ground water by oil products, destruction of natural landscapes, etc. with the use of natural landscapes, etc. the impact of activities at these sites, which will promote security and defense reforms and the implementation of NATO standards.
The introduction of international standards of environmental management systems at enterprises and companies will contribute to the development of environmental management system and the implementation of international environmental initiatives in Ukraine.
Implementation of the ecosystem approach to sectoral policies and improvement of the integrated environmental management system, integration of environmental policy with other policies, mandatory consideration of the environmental component when developing and approving state planning documents and in the decision-making process for conducting economic activities, which can have a significant impact on the environment, including the environmental modernization of industrial enterprises by reducing the rate of environmental tax or in the form of a fixed annual amount of pay equal (refund), coupled with improved environmental performance of products is the way to the modern system of environmental policy, implemented in the countries – members of the European Union.
The introduction of an environmental risk management system in all areas of the national economy will help to prevent man-made and environmental catastrophes.
The quality of the atmospheric air
Air pollution is one of the most pressing environmental problems. Despite some decline in production in Ukraine, the level of air pollution in large cities and industrial regions remains consistently high.
The main pollutants of air and sources of greenhouse gases in Ukraine are the enterprises of extractive and processing industry, heat power engineering, motor transport.
In fact, two-thirds of the country’s population lives in areas where atmospheric air does not meet hygiene standards, which affects the overall morbidity.
The main reasons for the poor quality of atmospheric air in the settlements cause the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, are the non-compliance of economic entities with environmental legislation and low rates of implementation of new technologies. In order to improve the quality of the atmospheric air and strengthen its response to the effects of climate change and to achieve the goals of sustainable low-carbon development in all sectors of the economy, Ukraine must ensure that ratified international instruments on climate change and the quality of the atmosphere are fulfilled.
Climate change
At the beginning of the 21st century, the global community recognized that climate change was one of the major problems of global development with potentially serious threats to the global economy and international security as a result of increased direct and indirect risks related to energy security, food security and drinking water, energy and drinking. ecosystems, risks to human health and life.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change sets the stage for addressing this problem. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , ratified by the Law of Ukraine “On Ratification of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change”, sets quantitative targets for greenhouse gas emission reductions for 2020 developed and transition economies to which Ukraine belongs.
In December 2015 in Paris adopted a new global climate Paris Agreement to the Framework Convention of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change , ratified by the Law of Ukraine “On ratification of the Paris agreement.”
Pursuant to the Paris Agreement, Ukraine as a party to the agreement is obliged to make its nationally determined contribution to achieving the goals of sustainable low carbon development in all sectors of the economy and enhancing its ability to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change, in particular by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The main sources of greenhouse gas emissions in Ukraine are industry, energy and transport.
Water protection
Ukraine is one of the least water-supplied countries in Europe, with water use in the country being largely irrational. Due to toxic, microbiological and biogenic pollution, the ecological status of river basins, as well as coastal waters and territorial waters of the Black and Azov seas is deteriorating. Particularly noteworthy is the unsatisfactory condition of the Black Sea estuaries, most of which belong to the nature reserve fund and are unique recreational resources. The groundwater of Ukraine in many regions in their quality does not meet the established requirements for water sources, which is primarily due to anthropogenic pollution, and their intensive use leads to the depletion of groundwater horizons.
The main sources of water pollution are discharges from industrial sites, inadequate drainage and sewage infrastructure, non-compliance with water protection zones, flushing and drainage of toxic substances from agricultural land.
The main pollutants are heavy metal compounds, nitrogen and phosphorus compounds, petroleum products, phenols, sulfates, surfactants. Recently, there has been an increase in contamination of medical waste and microplastics, which is not controlled today.
Water pollution leads to various diseases of the population, a decrease in the general resistance of the organism and, as a consequence, to an increase in the level of general morbidity, in particular infectious and oncological diseases.
The current water monitoring system is inefficient and outdated and does not meet current European standards.
The public water management system requires immediate reform and transition to integrated basin water management.
Protection of lands and soils
The modern use of land resources of Ukraine does not meet the requirements of rational use of nature. The state of Ukraine’s land resources is close to critical.
Water and wind erosion affect about 57 percent of Ukraine’s territory, more than 12 percent of the country’s territory are flooded.
By different criteria, about 20 percent of Ukraine’s lands are contaminated. Almost 23,000 cases of landslides are recorded annually. Abrasion destroys up to 60 percent of the coast of the Azov and Black Seas and 41 percent of the Dnieper reservoirs. More than 150,000 hectares of land have been damaged as a result of mining and other activities. The number of underground and surface karst events is about 27 thousand.
The reasons for this situation are complex and have historical background. Of particular note is the violation of an ecologically balanced relationship between land categories, the reduction of the territory of the unique steppe areas, the excessive plowing of the territory and the violation of the natural process of soil formation, the use of imperfect technologies in agriculture, industry, energy, transport and other sectors of the economy- economic benefits, ignoring the environmental component and the long-term negative effects.
Forest protection
Forestry is 15.9 percent of the territory of Ukraine. State forests are unevenly distributed, from 3.7 percent in Zaporizhia to 51.4 percent in Transcarpathian regions. The best European recommendation is the 20 percent afforestation, which requires the creation of more than two million hectares of new forests. At the same time, the creation of new forests should not be done through afforestation of unique steppe areas.
The main causes of problems in the forest area are the imperfection of the forest management and development system, the lack of legal and economic mechanisms, the promotion of the introduction of conservation technologies, the imperfection of the tax base, as well as the unclear definition of the legal status of land management under forest shelter strips.
Coordination of works on the protection and reproduction of forests is carried out by central (in state-owned forests) and local executive bodies (in municipal-owned forests). About 0.8 million hectares of state-owned forest land (including forest shelter strips) have not been utilized and classified as reserve land. The fuzzy definition of the legal status of land management under forest protection strips leads to a significant deterioration of the condition of the plantations and their loss.
The lack of a system of financing forestry activities, especially in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, led to the cessation of works on the creation of protective forest plantations on low-productive and degraded lands and failure to implement preventive fire measures in forests, which increased the risk of deforestation; forests and environmental degradation.
Bosom
In the area of subsoil use in Ukraine there are systemic problems that pose a real threat to the economic security of the state. In Ukraine, which is 0.4 percent of the planet’s land surface, up to five percent of all the world’s mineral resources have been discovered. In Ukraine, more than 20 thousand deposits and ores of 95 types of minerals have been discovered, of which about 8 thousand are of industrial importance and are accounted for by the State Balance of Minerals. The total number of developed fields is about three thousand. At the same time, inefficient public administration in this area, lack of investment, use of obsolete equipment by mining companies, which is worn down to 70 percent, and the outflow of qualified specialists have led to a decrease in the quality of work in the industry.
Most of the minerals in Ukraine are mined within several major mining regions – Donetsk, Kryvyi Rih-Nikopol, and Carpathian. The prolonged intensive extraction of mineral resources in these regions has led to significant changes in the geological environment and emergencies of natural and man-made nature. The main factors of negative impact are extremely high concentration of mining enterprises, high level of production of the vast majority of fields, illegal extraction of amber on a large scale, which led to disturbance of ecosystems, insufficient financing of works related to reducing the environmental impact of the environment, and non-reclamation of the produced sites, first of all Polesie.
The transition to resource-saving technologies, the full implementation of environmental impact assessment, the obligation of reclamation and the inevitability of responsibility for violations of environmental legislation should be the main areas of balanced use of the bowels of Ukraine.
Proper government in the field of geological exploration and exploitation of the subsoil, attracting investment will help to increase the production of scarce raw materials and increase the economic independence and security of the state.
Emergency
There is a high risk of natural and man-made emergencies in Ukraine.
The main causes of man-made accidents and catastrophes and increased negative impact due to emergencies of natural and man-made nature in Ukraine are: obsolescence of fixed assets, in particular environmental protection, large volume of transportation, storage and use of hazardous substances, emergency state of a large part of the economy investment support for the implementation of environmentally sound, resource- and energy-saving technologies, especially in the alurhiyniy, chemical, petrochemical and energy sectors; significant changes in the state of the geological environment due to the closure of unprofitable mining enterprises, hydrogeological regime of water bodies,
Climate change is another cause of emergencies. The effects of climate change (warming, increasing the number and intensity of extreme weather events), together with the high levels of vulnerability of individual segments of the population, lead to social and economic losses today and in the future. In particular, there is an increase in the threat of catastrophic floods in the Carpathians, large-scale fires in peatlands, flooding of territories, expansion of the arid zone of the southern region, increasing the frequency and duration of droughts, drying of rivers and reservoirs of the Black Sea, the Azov region, including the Steppe River, including the desert region, the flooding of coastal territories and the acute shortage of drinking water in the central, southern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
Exclusion zone and zone of unconditional (mandatory) eviction
The exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (compulsory) resettlement require a special form of management, since these are lands on which there is a persistent pollution of the environment by radioactive substances and which are withdrawn from economic circulation and are separated from the adjacent territory.
On the territory of the exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (compulsory) resettlement there are objects of the State specialized enterprise “Chornobyl NPP”, which require their decommissioning and ecologically safe state, and objects of the system of radiation-ecological control and radiation monitoring the state of the environment and the provision of radiation safety.
Land, water and forest resources of the exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (compulsory) evacuation, which serve as a natural barrier to the spread of radioactive contamination beyond their boundaries, need constant monitoring, use in compliance with radiation safety requirements. At the same time, in the territory of the exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (compulsory) resettlement, it became possible to preserve the most typical natural complexes of Polissya in the ecologically restored state.
Environmental problems of Donbass
Military action, destruction of infrastructure and environmentally hazardous enterprises in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine have disturbed the ecological equilibrium, which has led to dangerous changes in the environment, caused damage to health and violated the safety of life for five million people in the territory of about 30 thousand square kilometers.
The main threats are: flooding of mines and the possibility of toxic mine water coming to the surface, infiltration into groundwater; threat of falling into the river Seversky Donets and the Azov Sea; discontinuation of treatment facilities and damage to toxic and radioactive waste storage facilities; damage to the territories of the nature reserve fund; atmospheric air and soil pollution by chemical products due to ammunition explosions; destruction of landscapes and vegetation in connection with the use of military equipment and the construction of defense structures; the destruction of large areas of forests as a result of warfare and uncontrolled logging.
In recent years, in these territories there has been virtually no opportunity to assess damage to natural complexes and industrial sites, to carry out the necessary repair and restoration work, as well as to carry out state surveillance (control) in the field of environmental protection.
Environmental monitoring of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, where state authorities temporarily do not exercise their powers, with the possible involvement of international environmental experts to assess the environmental situation, is becoming increasingly relevant.
Waste management
Significant amounts of waste accumulated in Ukraine and the lack of effective measures to prevent their generation, recycling, disposal, disposal and environmentally sound disposal, exacerbate the ecological crisis and become a brake factor for the development of the national economy. Significant resource potential is being lost and, at the same time, such an unfavorable environmental situation is worsening.
Lack of effective control leads to the mass formation of unauthorized landfills and numerous violations of the law during the management of hazardous waste. In the absence of separate collection of household waste, the problem of hazardous waste management contained in household waste is virtually unsolved.
In the structure of the total amount of waste generated in the state, I-III hazardous waste is less than two percent of the total amount.
In Ukraine, the share of mining waste (overburden and mineral enrichment products) is high – over 75 percent of all waste generated, of which less than two percent is municipal waste. Actual amounts of accumulated waste exceed those reported in the statistical reporting, since bankrupt and non-operating enterprises that previously accumulated significant amounts of waste are not taken into account when conducting national statistical surveys. Waste disposal sites located in such facilities adversely affect the environment. There is an extremely low level of substitution of primary natural resources through the use of production wastes or by-products (including slag).
Unlike European countries, Ukraine has a very low level of solid waste recycling and disposal and a high level of landfill disposal. Much of the landfill is overloaded and does not meet environmental and sanitary standards.
A significant threat to the environment and human health is the waste generated in the process of health care, processing of raw materials of animal origin, pharmacological and cosmetic industries containing dangerous pathogenic and conditionally pathogenic microorganisms, as well as waste electrical and electronic equipment.
The main reason for this situation is the imperfect legal framework, the lack of an effective accounting and reporting system, and a monitoring system in the field of waste management.
Solving this problem is a key task in addressing the issues of energy and resource independence of the state, saving natural material and energy resources, and the task of state environmental policy.
Biosafety
The priorities of the state policy in the field of biological security and biological protection are implementation of systematic measures for creation and effective functioning of the national system of biological security and biological protection, counteraction of manifestations of bioterrorism, protection of the population against the uncontrolled and illegal spread of genetically modified organisms, preservation of a person’s state of safety the environment, creating an early detection system and responding quickly to the spread of pathogens and dangerous diseases such international importance and improvement of material and technical state laboratories, agencies and institutions that carry out diagnostics of infectious diseases, monitoring the circulation of infectious agents in the objects of human environment, involved in the system of indication of biological pathogens, determine the quantitative and qualitative content of genetically modified organisms in the production of plant and animal origin, laboratories working with pathogens of particularly dangerous infectious diseases, determining their impact on the environment, in particular biological diversity, in biodiversity human health; creation of a system of rapid response to the manifestations of bioterrorism.
Biodiversity and landscape diversity
Occupying less than 6 percent of Europe’s area, Ukraine owns about 35 percent of its biodiversity. The biosphere of Ukraine has more than 70 thousand species of flora and fauna, in particular flora – more than 27 thousand species, fauna – more than 45 thousand species. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of plant and animal species included in the Red Data Book of Ukraine.
Ukraine is located at the intersection of migratory paths of many species of fauna, through its territory there are two major global routes of migration of wild birds, and some breeding sites are international. More than 100 species of migratory birds are protected in accordance with international obligations. Of the migratory fauna of Ukraine, more than 130 species of migratory birds, 8 species of fish, 3 species of marine mammals, 28 species of bat are protected in accordance with international obligations.
The Nature Reserve Fund of Ukraine includes 8,246 territories and sites covering an area of 3.98 million hectares (6.6 percent of the country’s total area) and 402.5 thousand hectares within the Black Sea. The share of LNG land in Ukraine is insufficient and remains much smaller than in most European Union Member States, where the share of such land is on average 21 percent of the area of the EU Member States.
During the years of independence, the area of the nature reserve fund has doubled, but this is not enough to preserve the rare and endangered species of plants and animals, their habitats. At the same time, the imperfection of the existing legislative base, the lack of a clearly defined strategy for the development of the reserve business and the imperfection of its management system, the low level of financial and logistical support for the organization and functioning of the nature reserve fund, the inadequacy of the system of protection of the territories and objects of the nature reserve fund requirements, lack of a unified system of remuneration, social guarantees and benefits for their workers, low level of environmental education and awareness of the population The risk of misuse and loss of territories and objects of the nature reserve fund is threatened.
In order to stop the processes of environmental degradation, it is necessary to increase the land area of the eco-network, which is a strategic task for achieving ecological balance of the territory of Ukraine. Increasing the area of the national eco-network should primarily be due to the expansion of existing and creation of new territories and objects of the nature reserve fund.
The main threat to biodiversity are human activities and the destruction of the natural habitat of flora and fauna. There is a catastrophic decrease in the area of wetlands, steppe ecosystems, natural forests, which occurs as a result of land plowing, deforestation with subsequent change of land use, drainage or watering of territories, industrial, residential and holiday construction, etc. The spread of non-native species in natural ecosystems causes considerable imbalance in biocenoses.
The task of biodiversity protection is not solved during land privatization, preparation and implementation of sectoral, regional and local development programs. The absence of the boundaries of the territories and objects of the nature reserve fund fixed on the territory in accordance with the procedure established by law leads to violation of the requirements of the reserve regime. The rate at which coastal protective strips along the seas, rivers, and around water bodies that play the role of environmental corridors are unsatisfactory.
In order to curb biodiversity loss, Ukraine should take into account the recommendations of international instruments on the revision and updating of legislation and regulations on biological diversity.
Ensuring environmentally balanced use of nature
In September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly Resolution on “Transforming Our World: A 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” was adopted.
A national system of sustainable development goals has been developed in Ukraine, which should provide a basis for further planning of Ukraine’s development, overcoming the imbalances that exist in the economic, social and environmental spheres; to ensure that the environment is conducive to the quality of life and well-being of present and future generations; create the necessary conditions for a social contract between government, business and civil society to improve the quality of life of citizens and guarantee socio-economic and environmental stability; achieve a high level of education and public health; the implementation of a regional policy based on a harmonious integration of national and regional interests; preservation of national cultural values and traditions.
Regional environmental policy
Differences in socio-economic development of the regions of Ukraine cause uneven technogenic load on the environment. It is envisaged that the provisions of the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine for the period up to 2030 and developed on its basis and taking into account the tasks of the State Regional Development Strategy for the period up to 2020approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, national action plans will be integrated into regional programs of socio-economic development and detailed at the level of regional environmental action plans of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, regions, cities of Kyiv and Sevastopol, on the basis of which local action plans will be developed on environmental protection, prepared at the level of territorial communities, city, village and town councils.
According to the results of the implementation of local action plans, it is expected to strengthen the importance of local self-government bodies in the process of implementation of the state environmental policy, to determine the directions of its improvement taking into account the regional specificity.
II. Purpose, principles, principles and instruments of state environmental policy
The goal of the state environmental policy is to achieve good environmental status by introducing an ecosystem approach to all areas of socio-economic development of Ukraine with the aim of ensuring the constitutional right of every citizen of Ukraine to a clean and safe environment, introducing a balanced use of nature and preserving and restoring natural ecosystems.
The main principles of the state environmental policy are:
maintaining a condition of the climate system that makes it impossible to increase the risks to human health and well-being and the environment;
Ukraine’s achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (MDGs), which were endorsed at the 2015 United Nations Sustainable Development Summit;
promoting balanced (sustainable) development by achieving a balance of components of development (economic, environmental, social), focusing on the priorities of balanced (sustainable) development;
integration of ecological requirements during the development and approval of state planning documents, sectoral (sectoral), regional and local development and in the process of deciding on the implementation of planned activities of objects that can have a significant impact on the environment;
intersectoral partnerships and stakeholder engagement;
prevention of natural and man-made emergencies, which involves analysis and forecasting of environmental risks based on the results of strategic environmental assessment, environmental impact assessment, as well as comprehensive monitoring of the environment;
ensuring ecological safety and maintaining ecological balance in the territory of Ukraine, increasing the level of ecological safety in the exclusion zone;
ensuring the inevitability of responsibility for violation of environmental legislation;
application of the principles of precaution, prevention (prevention), priority of elimination of sources of harm to the environment, “polluter pays”;
responsibility of executive authorities and local self-government bodies for accessibility, timeliness and accuracy of environmental information;
stimulation by the state of domestic economic entities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce energy and resource consumption, modernize production aimed at reducing the negative impact on the environment, including improving the environmental tax system for environmental pollution and payments for the use of natural resources resources;
implementation of the latest means and forms of communication and effective information policy in the field of environmental protection.
The implementation of the principles of state environmental policy is carried out on the principles of:
openness, accountability, publicity of public authorities;
public participation in public policy making;
respect for environmental rights of citizens;
promotion of environmentally responsible business and environmentally conscious behavior of citizens;
prevention of environmental damage;
international cooperation and European integration.
The main instruments for implementing state environmental policy are:
intersectoral partnerships and stakeholder involvement – will enable involvement of all stakeholders (state and local authorities, economic entities, private sector, academics, the public) in the planning and implementation of the policy;
information and communication – will contribute to raising public awareness about the activities of executive authorities in the field of environmental protection and effective implementation of regulations, the state of the environment and its levels of pollution, principles and methods of sustainable consumption and production, environmental protection and environmental protection attitude to wildlife;
State regulation in the field of environmental protection – will allow to establish scientifically sound restrictions on the use of natural resources and pollution of the environment and to introduce an integrated permit for the regulation of environmental pollution in accordance with Directive 2010/75 / EC on industrial pollution on pollution) (revised);
strategic environmental assessment and environmental impact assessment – will help to prevent negative impact on the environment and to establish compliance with the planned or implemented activities with the rules and requirements of the legislation on environmental protection, rational use and reproduction of natural resources, ensuring environmental safety;
environmental management systems, environmental audit, environmental certification and product labeling – will improve the environmental validity and efficiency of economic entities, improve the environmental characteristics of products, establish compliance of environmental audit with the requirements of environmental legislation and improve the management of entities carry out environmentally hazardous activities;
environmental accounting – will ensure the identification, registration, synthesis, storage, processing and preparation of relevant information about the activity of the enterprise in the field of environmental protection in order to transmit it to internal and external users and will facilitate management decisions taking into account economic efficiency, social justice and environmental justice;
technical regulation and accounting in the field of environmental protection, environmental management and environmental safety – will enable to introduce scientifically sound and environmentally sound and public health requirements for processes, goods and services that meet European standards / requirements;
legislation of Ukraine in the field of environmental protection, adapted to the legislation of the European Union – aimed at achieving national priorities and ensuring its approximation to the relevant directives of the European Union implementation of multilateral environmental agreements (conventions, protocols, etc.), to which Ukraine is a party;
education in the interests of balanced (sustainable) development – will allow to establish methodological frameworks and introduce continuous environmental education. Comprehensive environmental education and upbringing of the younger generation should be advanced at a rapid pace by supporting the activities of extracurricular educational institutions, eco-naturalistic centers and natural sections of child and adolescent centers and relevant public organizations;
economic and financial mechanisms, including the environmental modernization of industrial enterprises by reducing the rate of environmental tax or in the form of a fixed annual amount of compensation (tax reimbursement) – will ensure stable financing of environmental protection activities and stimulate the development of environmental entrepreneurship, including production of products, performance of works and provision of environmental services, and will help create a tax, credit and investment climate to attract international funds x donors and private capital in environmental protection, establishment of environmental management systems by entities, introduction of cleaner production, resource and energy saving technologies, enhanced forest reproduction;
integrated environmental monitoring and surveillance (control) in the field of environmental protection, rational use, reproduction and protection of natural resources – will ensure the transition to a system of crime prevention and monitoring of the environment, reduce pressure on the business environment, broad public involvement in the public control through the establishment of an effective system for monitoring compliance with environmental legislation, taking into account the best practices of organization of functions onuvannya similar institutions in the countries – members of the European Union;
international cooperation in the field of environmental protection and environmental protection – will ensure the fulfillment of international obligations in accordance with the multilateral and bilateral international treaties of Ukraine, expanding cooperation on the prevention of transboundary pollution of the environment.
III. Strategic goals and objectives
State environmental policy is aimed at achieving strategic goals.
Objective 1. Formation of environmental values and principles of sustainable consumption and production in society
The tasks are:
introduction of education in the interests of balanced (sustainable) development, ecological education and upbringing, educational activity with the purpose of formation in the society of ecological values and raising its ecological consciousness;
assessing the attitudes and awareness-raising of society about the value, benefits and tools of sustainable consumption and production, the status and values of biodiversity and the measures that must be taken to preserve, restore and sustainably use it;
ensuring the practical implementation of the results of modern and fundamental environmental research and continuous interaction between scientists and public authorities;
taking into account the recommendations of scientific institutions of environmental direction when making managerial decisions and preparing draft regulatory acts;
developing partnerships between sectors of society to involve all stakeholders in the planning and implementation of environmental policy;
ensuring public participation in management decisions in the field of environmental protection and nature management;
ensuring environmental rights and responsibilities of citizens, public access to justice in environmental matters and environmental management.
Objective 2. Ensuring sustainable development of Ukraine’s natural resource potential
The tasks are:
preparation and implementation of the Fundamental Principles (strategy) of the state environmental policy in a balanced forest management;
introduction of sustainable consumption and production tools;
improving the system of natural resource inventories, national statistical reporting on the use of natural resources and pollution of the environment;
creation of environmentally and economically sound system of payments for special use of natural resources, including natural resources with assimilation potential;
reducing the loss of biological and landscape diversity, in particular by improving the principles of ecological network formation, its expansion and sustainable use, and the preservation of unique natural landscapes;
conservation and restoration of the abundance of species of flora and fauna, including migratory species, habitats, rare and endangered species, species of fauna and flora and typical natural plant communities to be protected;
counteracting the illegal trade and trade in wild fauna and flora, including the introduction of a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, as well as in any other commercial activity of a public nature other than inpatient zoos;
enlargement and expansion of territories of the nature reserve fund (including protected areas in national nature parks and regional landscape parks), creation on land and in the waters of the Black and Azov seas and ensuring preservation and functioning of a representative and effectively managed system of territories and objects of nature reserve fund, including cross-border and European and international value;
reducing the negative impact of urbanization on the environment, stopping the destruction of the environment within cities, in particular, preventing the unjustified destruction of green spaces within cities during construction or other works, illegal removal of land, occupied by green planting;
ensuring the conservation, restoration and balanced use of the flora of Ukraine;
ensuring sustainable management of water resources by basin principle;
ensuring sustainable land use and protection, improving the condition of the affected ecosystems and contributing to the achievement of a neutral level of land degradation, raising the level of awareness of the population, landowners and land users about the problems of land degradation;
transformation of the field of subsoil use into the most transparent and investment attractive industry that meets the best international standards;
promoting the implementation of environmental management systems at enterprises while improving the environmental performance of products, including through international certification and marking systems;
introduction of a green procurement system in Ukraine;
scientific research of the exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (compulsory) resettlement;
stimulating the development of waste management infrastructure;
introduction of e-governance technologies in the environmental sphere;
stimulation of renewal of worn-out fixed assets of industrial and transport infrastructure and housing and communal services facilities through direct state subsidies, cheaper loans, partial compensation of interest rates on loans, etc.
Objective 3. Ensuring the integration of environmental policy into the decision-making process regarding the socio-economic development of Ukraine
The tasks are:
development of sectoral strategies for:
improving air quality;
improving water quality and water management, including the marine environment. Complete phasing out of the discharge of untreated and insufficiently treated wastewater into water bodies and ensuring compliance of the degree of wastewater treatment with the established standards and standards, as well as prevention of groundwater pollution;
conservation of the ozone layer;
climate change prevention and adaptation;
management of waste and resources, return to economic circulation of resource materials;
the gradual restriction of the use of certain plastic products in the food industry;
ensuring the protection and protection of nature;
reduction of industrial pollution and risks of industrial accidents;
conservation of biodiversity and landscapes;
control and prevention of biological contamination;
handling of hazardous chemicals;
ensuring that the environmental component is integrated into the policies and / or programs of national, sectoral, regional and local development, creating a tax, credit and investment climate to attract international donors and private capital into environmental protection activities;
eliminating the direct dependence of economic growth on increasing the use of natural resources and energy and increasing the level of environmental pollution;
promoting the introduction of more environmentally friendly, resource-efficient production and environmental innovations by economic entities, in particular the environmental modernization of industrial enterprises by reducing the rate of environmental tax or in the form of a fixed annual amount of compensation (tax refund);
introduction of sustainable low-carbon development in all sectors of the economy in Ukraine;
integrating biodiversity issues into national, local, strategic, programmatic documents and development plans for the economy and its industries;
introduction of environmental management systems, development of voluntary environmental certification, product labeling, environmental audit.
Objective 4. Reducing environmental risks in order to minimize their impact on ecosystems, socio-economic development and public health
The tasks are:
reducing the level of air and water pollution;
regulation of industrial harvesting of aquatic living resources within the territorial waters of the exclusive (maritime) economic zone, the continental shelf and inland waters of Ukraine;
reduction of anthropogenic impact on the ecosystems of the Black and Azov seas;
improvement of soil quality and introduction of an effective system for increasing their fertility;
introduction of environmental risk management based on its real-time modeling with the use of the latest information technologies to protect natural ecosystems, health and well-being of the population;
preventing the spread of invasive species and controlling the occurrence and spread of such species in natural ecosystems, including marine ecosystems;
providing and promoting the use of modern pesticides and agrochemicals with minimal adverse effects on human flora, fauna and health;
reducing the amount of radionuclide removal beyond the exclusion zone and the zone of unconditional (mandatory) eviction;
preventing the uncontrolled release of genetically modified organisms into the environment;
formation of the ecological component of the state system of protection of critical infrastructure of Ukraine;
stimulating the substitution of primary natural resources through the use of production wastes or by-products, including slag;
implementation of a sustainable waste and hazardous chemicals management system;
solving environmental problems, restoring and conserving the Donbass’s natural environment.
Objective 5. Improvement and development of the state system of environmental management
The tasks are:
the implementation of sound environmental governance principles, the maintenance of ongoing dialogue with stakeholders on the preparation and adoption of strategic decisions;
strengthening institutional capacity for planning, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of environmental policy implementation;
introducing environmental accounting to evaluate policy and governance effectiveness;
the development and improvement of environmental legislation and its enforcement, including the approximation of Ukrainian legislation to EU law;
increased responsibility for environmental damage in accordance with Ukraine’s international commitments;
providing scientific, information and innovation support to the management decision-making process;
cyber defense of relevant environmental information resources, systems, databases;
enhancement of environmental management capabilities in conducting comprehensive environmental monitoring and state control in the field of environmental protection, rational use, reproduction and protection of natural resources;
differentiation of functions of environmental protection and economic activities on the use of natural resources;
ensuring a clear distribution of responsibilities in the field of environmental protection at national, regional and local levels;
ensuring targeted budgetary financing of environmental protection measures and non-state investment of environmental projects;
improvement of personnel policy and professional training of specialists in the system of environmental protection and nature management.
IV. Stages of implementation of the state environmental policy
The achievement of the goals of the state environmental policy will be carried out in two stages:
by 2025 it is envisaged to stabilize the ecological situation by fixing the changes in the public administration system that have occurred by reforming the public environmental management system, implementing European environmental norms and standards, improving environmental accounting and control systems, introducing financial and economic mechanisms to stimulate environmentally-oriented economic structures , introduction of mechanisms for stimulating enterprises to energy efficiency, introduction of e-government tion, spreading environmental awareness and increasing environmental consciousness of society, informatization sphere of environmental protection and environmental management at all levels;
significant changes are expected by 2030 to improve the environment through a balance between socio-economic needs and environmental objectives, to ensure the development of an environmentally effective partnership between the state, economic entities and the public, sustainable low-carbon development that will additional incentive for socio-economic development of Ukraine.
V. Monitoring and evaluation of performance
The basis of the monitoring is a system of indicators for evaluating the implementation of the state environmental policy (appendix), focused on sustainable development indicators and the objectives of a balanced environmental policy. The results of monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the Fundamental Principles (strategy) of the state environmental policy are reflected in the National report on the implementation of the state environmental policy of Ukraine, submitted by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine every five years, in regional and sectoral environmental reports, which are submitted annually to the central executive body that ensures the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of environmental protection and environmental security, central and local these bodies of executive power, bodies of local self-government.
The central executive body, which provides for the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of environmental protection and ecological safety, annually prepares and promulgates the report on the implementation of the state environmental policy of Ukraine and the implementation of the National Action Plan for the Implementation of the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy.
VI. Expected results
In 2030, Ukraine must achieve a level of balanced (sustainable) development in which dependence on the use of non-renewable natural resources and pollution will be reduced to ecosystem-friendly levels.
By 2030, Ukraine needs to put in place an effective management system to ensure a balanced use of natural resources, taking into account the need to provide for future generations.
In order to ensure the entry of Ukraine into international and European markets, measures should be envisaged to guarantee the implementation of international standards of environmental management and ecological labeling of products, accelerate informatization of the environment and use of natural resources, creation of a national multilevel infrastructure for geo-ecological data management and nation-wide ecological and environmental information- analytical system for providing access to environmental information.
Conditions for further development of the ecological network, creation of a representative and effectively managed system of territories and objects of the nature reserve fund will be created in Ukraine, including through the ecological restoration of damaged, saline and degraded soils and soil contaminated due to the Chornobyl disaster, Conservation areas have also been expanded to preserve the most typical natural complexes of Polissya in the natural state.
The development of ecosystem services will create opportunities for the sustainable development of society and the ecosystem. The biodiversity of Ukraine that provides ecosystem services should be preserved, evaluated and properly restored by 2030.
It is expected to create a legal framework for the development of transport and telecommunications infrastructure, the construction of renewable energy facilities, taking into account the needs of migration and the free movement of animals.
It is expected that the legal framework and conditions will be created for the implementation of the state policy in the field of climate change, prevention of further land degradation and desertification, in particular through economical use of water resources and introduction of scientifically, environmentally and economically sound approaches to carrying out amelioration works.
Conditions must be created for the decarbonisation of the energy sector, the active introduction of energy-saving technologies and energy efficiency improvements, the increase of energy production through renewable and alternative sources, the implementation of the best available low-carbon, resource-saving production technologies, as well as modern construction and energy saving technologies. significantly reduce greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions, as well as pollutant discharge of substances in ponds.
Territorial expansion of cities and other settlements will be possible only on condition of preservation, creation and restoration of recreational, nature protection, health-improving territories and objects, landscapes, forests, parks, squares, separate green areas, and their development will more closely meet the requirements of adaptation to changes climate.
The problem of solid waste accumulation will be solved by minimizing their generation, ensuring maximum use of resource-intensive waste, and the problem of hazardous waste utilization will be solved by improving technological processes and construction of high-tech complexes for their disposal.
The development of long-distance transport infrastructure will take into account the maximum adaptation to the needs of migration and the free movement of animals, and most transport will be transferred to more environmentally friendly sources of fuel.
The introduction of integrated water management will significantly improve the ecological status of water bodies and streams.
It is expected that business entities and private households will only dispose of fully cleaned sewage into the city’s sewage system due to the widespread installation of modern local treatment systems.
The institutional capacity of the central executive body to ensure the formulation and implementation of state policies in the field of environmental protection and environmental safety will be enhanced by reforming and improving public administration and approximation of environmental legislation to the European Union environmental law.
The introduction of e-governance and automated environmental information systems will significantly increase the transparency, efficiency and quality of management decisions, and respect for citizens’ environmental rights.
The introduction of strategic environmental assessment of public planning documents will improve the mechanisms of strategic planning for socio-economic policy development at the national, regional and local levels and will be an important tool for environmental impact assessment, in particular in a transboundary context.
An integrated system of state monitoring and long-term scientific research on the state of all components of the environment will be created, regulated and technically provided in accordance with the requirements of European Union law and will operate in real time.
Scientific, technical, information and personnel components of state control in the field of environmental protection, sustainable use, reproduction and protection of natural resources and environmental monitoring will be improved due to the transition from inefficient total environmental control to a system of prevention of offenses based on complex state environment, reducing pressure on the business environment, public involvement in environmental protection First control.
A significant increase in the level of environmental education, education and upbringing of Ukrainian citizens will create conditions for introducing sustainable consumption patterns into the everyday life of citizens, activating their role in preventing pollution and monitoring the state of the environment, sustainable use of natural resources and restoration of the natural resource potential of Ukraine.
Implementation of the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy will enable:
create an effective system of access to public information / data, ensure environmental rights of the public to access public information on environmental protection and raise the level of environmental awareness of Ukrainian citizens;
improve the environment to a more secure level for ecosystems and populations, taking into account European environmental quality requirements;
eliminate the dependence of the economic growth process on increasing the use of natural resources and energy and increasing the level of environmental pollution;
reduce the loss of biodiversity and landscape diversity and form a coherent and representative eco-network;
improve the system of environmentally sustainable use of natural resources;
minimize soil contamination by hazardous contaminants and wastes;
ensure the transition to an integrated environmental management system in the field of environmental protection and the development of the environmental component in the economic sectors;
move to a system of comprehensive state monitoring of the state of the environment and improve the system of information support to the decision-making process.
| Addendum to the Fundamental Principles (Strategy) of the State Environmental Policy of Ukraine until 2030 |
INDICATORS OF EVALUATION OF THE
STATE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
| Characteristic | Unit | Target values | ||||
| base year (2015) | 2020 | 2025 | 2030 | |||
| 1. | Share of renewable energy sources (including hydropower and thermal energy) | percent of total energy consumption | 4 | 8 | 12 | 17 |
| 2. | The capacity of the gross domestic product | cube. meters of used water per 1000 UAH of gross domestic product, at actual prices | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 2.5 |
| 3. | Energy intensity of gross domestic product | ratio of primary energy expenditure per unit gross domestic product, kilograms of oil equivalent per US $ 1 in purchasing power parity in 2011 | 0.28 | 0.2 | 0.18 | 0.13 |
| 4. | Gross domestic product resource intensity | per cent of the value of natural resources per unit of gross domestic product, relative to 2015 | 100 | 90 | 80 | 60 |
| 5. | Rural population with access to improved sanitation | percent of the total rural population | 1.9 | 20 | 50 | 80 |
| 6. | Urban population having access to centralized drainage systems | percent of the total urban population | 87,1 | 90 | 100 | 100 |
| 7. | Discharges of contaminated sewage into water bodies | percent of total discharges | 15.7 | 13 | 10 | 5 |
| 8. | River basins for which river basin management plans have been approved | units | 1 | 9 | 9 | |
| 9. | Discharges of polluted sewage into the marine environment | percent of total discharges to the marine environment | 15 | 11 | 9 | 5 |
| 10. | An array of waters with good ecological status | percent of the total number of water bodies | 20 | 30 | ||
| 11. | Enterprises in which chemical management systems are implemented in accordance with international standards | percent of the total number of businesses using hazardous chemicals | 50 | 100 | 100 | |
| 12. | Share of disposed waste | percent of total waste generated | 50 | 45 | 40 | 35 |
| 13. | Volumes of use of primary raw materials | percent of total raw materials used | 90 | 85 | 80 | 70 |
| 14. | Area of lands of nature reserve fund | thousands of hectares | 3803,1 | 6276,9 | 7545,4 | 9095,1 |
| 15. | Area of lands of nature reserve fund of national importance | percent of the total territory of the country | 2.24 | 5.14 | 7.38 | 8.85 |
| 16. | Area of lands of nature reserve fund | percent of the total territory of the country | 6,3 | 10.4 | 12.5 | 15 |
| 17. | Area of national ecological network territories | percent of the total territory of the country | 38,2 | 39 | 40 | 41 |
| 18. | Forested area of the country | percent of the total territory of the country | 15.9 | 16 | 16.5 | 17.5 |
| 19. | Share of extensive agricultural land (hayfields, pastures) in the total territory of the country | percent | 13 | 13,9 | 14,8 | 15.8 |
| 20. | Communities that approve and implement development strategies and action plans for their implementation, developed with the participation of the public | percent of total communities | 80 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 21. | Greenhouse gas emissions | percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 1990 | 37,8 | <76 | <60 | <60 |
| 22. | Emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere from stationary sources | percent of emissions in 2015 | 100 | <6 | <16.5 | <22,5 |
| 23. | Emissions of pollutants into atmospheric air from stationary sources are conditionally reduced to carbon monoxide, taking into account the relative aggressiveness of the main pollutants | percent of 2015 level | 100 | 95 | 90 | 85 |
| 24. | Emissions of pollutants into the ambient air from mobile sources are conventionally reduced to carbon monoxide, taking into account the relative aggressiveness of the main pollutants | percent of 2015 level | 100 | 95 | 85 | 70 |
| 25. | Cities of Ukraine, where the average daily concentrations of the main pollutants in the atmospheric air exceed the average daily maximum permissible concentrations | units | 23 | 22 | 20 | 15 |
| 26. | Areas and agglomerations approved for improvement of air quality | percent of the total | 30 | 65 | 100 | |
| 27. | Electric transport | percent of the total new vehicles purchased | 0.1 | 0.5 | 10 | |
| 28. | Environmental Performance Index | index | 79,691 th most common | 83 | 85 | |
| 29. | State and local plans and programs subject to strategic environmental assessment | percent of the total | 100 | 100 | 100 | |
| 30. | Report on the implementation of state environmental policy | units | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |