Reuters spoke to nearly 20 specialists in the field, including forest rangers, ecologists, demining experts and government officials, who provided a detailed picture of the ruin wrought on Ukraine's forests by the 31-month-old war. Tending to forests is now a perilous occupation, with mines and unexploded shells hidden in the ground posing the biggest threat. The war has torn through the habitats of some unique flora such as the chalk pine, a rare subspecies of Scots pine, according to ecologists and park officials. He estimated about 80% of the pine forests in the eastern region of Luhansk had been destroyed. The World Bank estimated in February that the damage wrought by the war on forests and other protected natural areas including marshes and wetlands exceeded $30 billion.

Source: The Hindu October 10, 2024 12:40 UTC