These days, Ukraine is working on a surprising reconstruction plan for the moment after the end of the fighting: the country is not content only with the reconstruction of the ruins, but also seeks to rebuild itself in a more ecological and sustainable way
It is difficult to remain indifferent to the sights of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol after the systematic shelling it suffered at the hands of Russia: entire neighborhoods that were bombed, including hundreds of hospitals, clinics, schools, cultural sites and thousands of residential buildings that were completely destroyed. And as everyone knows, this severe injury is dwarfed by the number of dead and wounded of the war.
Mariupol is just one example of the widespread destruction caused in the country since the beginning of the war between Russia and Ukraine - destruction that will require a lot of financial and planning resources to restore. Therefore, already today, while the country continues to fight for its freedom, the European Union is promoting an ambitious plan to restore Ukraine after the end of the fighting.
But this is not a normal plan: the government of Ukraine, with the support of the international community and international organizations, is working on A restoration plan that will focus on an environmental and ecological approach, which may make the country more resilient; Not only in the face of geopolitical threats - but also in the face of the climate crisis.
restores and sustains
War is first of all - and above all - injury to souls: dead and wounded - soldiers and civilians, caught in a disaster. In addition to these victims, wars also produce widespread crises: refugees, unemployment, hunger and malnutrition, collapse of state institutions, and more.
But wars also have another and less talked about aspect: The injury the environmental The mighty that they cause It is due to armies that are huge fuel consumers and polluters, fires, waste in huge quantities, damage to biological diversity, deforestation and more. Moreover, after all this damage has been caused - it is also necessary to repair and restore, and new construction or restoration of damaged infrastructures are processes that have a rather high environmental price tag.
It may seem that it is still a little too early to talk about the restoration of a country that has not yet laid down its shield and its sword; But a process like the one that Ukraine will need is such a huge, complex and expensive challenge - according to Calculations and forecasts Primary, the country will need 750 billion euros to restore the country and its economy - so various parties are already starting to plan it now: the government of Ukraine, together with the European Union, the European Bank and a coalition of international organizations led by a super organization called RISE Ukrainian, who joined together to plan the green restoration.
The plan was written in accordance with the criteria and values of the Paris Agreement and plan European Green Deal whose main goal is to make Europe a carbon-neutral continent - the first in the world - by 2050. While relying on these agreements, The Ukrainian program is inclusive, among other things, the implementation and promotion of energy-saving solutions in the field of construction, the promotion of a circular economy, changes in the public transportation system such as switching to electric vehicles in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the development of energy systems in the country with an emphasis on renewable energy - and a transition to energy independence independent of Russia, of course .
Thinking far is green
According to Aviad Sher-Shalom, an environmental planner and consultant in the field of sustainability and green construction - there is tremendous potential in the reconstruction of Ukraine. "This will be an opportunity to increase or decrease the disaster that has befallen the country," he says. "After the end of the war, there will be hundreds of thousands of apartments that the state will have to build, and one possibility is to establish them in a 'business as usual' manner - that is, to build as quickly as possible, provide a roof for the people and restore the economy quickly; I mean, go for the easy solution, which is usually the one chosen after ecological disasters or those caused by humans.'
But there is also another possibility: according to Minister Shalom, it is precisely now that long-term planning is important, which will also create economic opportunities. "The document for the reconstruction of Ukraine promoted by the European Union says: 'Don't neglect long-term thinking,'" explains Sher-Shalom. According to him, this is a decision that is also economically correct. "Sustainable construction will not cost more money, on the contrary - it will cost less," he testifies. I mean, green construction may indeed be more expensive in the short term - but in the long term it will be more profitable in many cases.
One of Sher-Shalom's proposals is to use Ukraine's existing asset - the extensive wood industry in the country - and build most of the new buildings from wood, which is material husband Advantages environmental Significant. "Ukraine is a very large wood exporter," he says. "Those trees arrive at factories in neighboring countries, where they are turned into CLT (engineered wood panels - AD) and with their help build 'carbon dioxide-free' buildings (which emit less greenhouse gases during their construction process, and may even have a negative carbon footprint - ad) in a short time and at a price that approaches the market price". According to him, if those countries, such as Germany, Austria and Norway - which know how to turn these trees into building materials - help establish such factories in Ukraine, the Ukrainians will be able to build all their new buildings from local wood. "Initially the industry will be busy with the restoration of the country itself and then it will form a solid and sustainable economic base for it," he says.
keep green
The move described stands out in the landscape of environmental attitudes in Ukraine: before the war, the country lagged behind the developed world when it came to the fight against the climate crisis, and a month before the Russian invasion, Ukraine was ranked at the bottom Various environmental indicators, such as air quality and the health of the ecosystem.
At the same time, Ukraine has a lot to maintain: About פי Report of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the country contains in its area about 35 percent of the biological diversity of the entire continent of Europe, it has more than 70 thousand rare and endemic plants and animals, and about 16 percent of its area is covered by forests - a figure that has changed in the period since the fighting broke out, about 20 A thousand dunams of these forests have already burned.
So it is true that the country, its inhabitants and its forests - were severely damaged, and it is clear that the war is far from over, but it is already possible to plan its rehabilitation in a more correct way. "It is very easy to degenerate into the 'two more years' picture and neglect the '2050' picture," says Sher-Shalom. I mean, it's easy to choose rehabilitation with the short-term benefits - compared to a more sustainable and correct long-term process. But according to him, in order to choose the environmental restoration, Ukraine will need help. "For the realization of this important idea, there is a need for the mobilization of many forces from all over the world", he concludes.
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