They turned a park into a mortar firing range: Ukraine's Defence Intelligence reveals how Russians are destroying Ukrainian nature reserves

Russian forces have set up a mortar firing range in the Pryazovia National Nature Park and destroyed bird nesting sites in the Meotyda National Nature Park. Their actions have caused billions of dollars' worth of environmental damage and bear the hallmarks of war crimes.

Source: Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU)

Details: Data from the State Environmental Inspectorate of the Southern District indicates that as of October 2026, over UAH 1.2 trillion (about US$28 billion) worth of damage has been done to protected natural areas in Kherson Oblast alone.

Russian forces are devastating Ukrainian ecosystems and protected areas, turning them into battlefields, military fortifications and heavily polluted sites, DIU noted.

Quote: "The aggressor state, Russia, is establishing so-called 'environmental protection institutions' in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson oblasts. The function of these sham bodies is to strengthen the occupiers' control over the hectares of protected land they have seized and Ukraine's natural resources."

Details: Dozens of Ukrainian protected areas are in active combat zones or under Russian occupation. These include:

• Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve in Kherson Oblast
• Meotyda National Nature Park in Donetsk Oblast
• Pryazovia National Nature Park in Zaporizhzhia Oblast
• Kinburn Spit in Mykolaiv Oblast
• Sviati Hory National Nature Park in Donetsk Oblast
• Kreminski Forests National Nature Park in Luhansk Oblast.

The war and the Russian occupation of Ukrainian territory are destroying soil, causing fires, contaminating land with fuel, and damaging natural habitats through the laying of mines, digging of trenches and movement of heavy military equipment.

Moreover, military vehicles compact the soil, damage plant root systems and disrupt natural drainage. Fuel, lubricants and ammunition remnants pose serious chemical risks to soil and water resources, while fires destroy vegetation, animal breeding grounds and food sources.

Quote: "Ageing multirole vessels, including those belonging to the aggressor state Russia's so-called 'shadow fleet', pose enormous risks to marine ecosystems. These are just some examples of the ecocide being committed by the occupiers, both in the occupied territories of Ukraine and on a global scale."

Background:

• Russian forces have turned the Kamiani Mohyly nature reserve near Mariupol into a military training ground.
• Earlier, we reported on how the Russians are destroying the unique natural environment of Dzharylhach Island, a protected area.

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