'We will try to protect what we can’ – Ukraine’s environment minister at COP29

Since February 2022, Ukraine has been fending off an all-out military assault on its territory, and is now heading for a harsh eastern European winter with its energy system decimated by deliberately targeted bombing.

In the 29 years since the first conference of the parties to the United Nations Framework Covention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) set the global battle to tackle rising temperatures in motion, the COP has become more than just a forum for dry, technical negotiations and is now about “international unity”, Grynchuk says.

“Using this platform…we want to demonstrate that at the same time as we speak about climate neutrality, about new technology, in Ukraine we have the very different situation,” she says, pointing to renewed attacks on energy infrastructure even as the winter heating season is underway that have caused a blackout in the port city of Odesa.

In the summer, such a situation might be manageable, she said, but now there is a risk of a serious humanitarian situation, and the potential for further waves of refugees heading further west into Europe, Grynchuk said.

“If we want to talk about climate neutrality, about joint efforts, how to achieve the climate goals, we need to solve this situation in Ukraine,” the Ukrainian politician argued.

The grim toll of environmental destruction

In addition to the acute problem caused by the latest damage to its power network, Grynchuk also pointed to the effect the war is having on the natural environment across the country – the theme of Ukraine’s national pavilion inside the COP29 venue which, ironically, is less than a minute’s walk from Russia’s.

“We need to stop additional emissions of CO2 because of forest fires, because of explosions, everyday explosions,” she continued. “And it's not just for Ukraine, it's for all civilized countries,” she say, arguing that a situation that should be impossible in the 21st century jeopardises the ongoing negotiations.

Grynchuk cited the grim toll of environmental destruction highlighted in the Ukrainian pavilion: three million hectares of forest lost to fires, biodiversity loss due to water contamination, substantial CO2 emissions linked to military activity.

The Ukrainian cabinet member, who was previously deputy energy minister, referred to the eighth item in a 10-point peace formula circulated by president Volodymyr Zelenskyy late in 2022, which calls for immediate protection of the environment.

Process of alignment with EU well underway

“We have already started a lot of projects, and we understand that we have just one way: it's to rebuild in a green and sustainable, climate neutral way,” she said. Critical energy and water supply infrastructure can be restored using new technologies and new approaches, she said.

As Ukraine points out in its pavilion in Baku, renewables have the double benefit of reducing dependency of fossil fuels and creating a decentralized system that is less vulnerable to attack.

Grynchuk said Ukraine had been offered support from several countries and organisations during the COP29 summit, but this comes with a proviso: they will only invest in and finance projects that are green.

“And for us, [this is] good news, because we want to use this opportunity to restore and to build a new economy – more efficient, sustainable,” Grynchuk said.

Ukrainian officials in Baku are unanimous in their conviction that their country will become an EU member state in the coming years. Grynchuk said the process of alignment was well under way in the energy sector. Kyiv recently adopted a law to establish an emissions trading system analogous to the EU’s cap-and-trade system to drive down industrial greenhouse gas output.

Some ecosystems are 'lost forever'

“Before the war, we established a monitoring, reporting and verification system, and it’s like a base for the future system,” she said. “We will continue this work,” she said, pointing to an aim to implement policy tools in line with those in the EU on its western border. “We see the future of our country in…this approach.”

In the meantime, Ukraine presses on with nature restoration efforts, even if their work could be wrecked by fresh attacks at any moment. Kyiv has put price tag of $71 billion on the destruction so far inflicted on its natural environment.

“Unfortunately, some ecosystems will be lost forever and will not be possible to restore,” Grynchuk said. “But we will try to protect and to restore what we can.”