On January 10, a seminar was held at the Department of Biology and Ecology of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University as part of the project “Testing an Assessment System for the Impact of Military Actions on the Environment and Human Health Using the Example of the Savyntsi Community in the Kharkiv Region”. The project is being implemented jointly with the Western Ukrainian Resource Center NGO, supported by the International Renaissance Foundation.
On this occasion, Acting Rector of PNU Ihor Tsependa, together with the Head of the Department of Biology and Ecology, Myroslava Mylenka, met with the Head of the Savyntsi Settlement Military Administration, Oksana Leonidivna Suprun, and the Head of the Western Ukrainian Resource Center, Vasyl Poluiko, to discuss the interaction mechanism and project implementation plan.
The project aims to assess potential genetic risks caused by environmental pollution due to military actions for humans and other living organisms. This methodological approach is an adaptation of prior experience by university researchers, previously tested during studies of the toxicity of pollutants in the Kalush industrial area and the impact of the Burshtyn TPP. Currently, the task is to test the developed algorithms for assessing the impact of military actions (using the example of the Savyntsi community). These studies are extremely important in the context of improving the system for documenting the aggressor’s war crimes against the environment.
During the seminar, participants discussed the practical aspects of conducting future research, including the specifics of establishing sample plots, collecting samples for research, project implementation stages, and more.