160,000 birds and more than 20,000 wild animals may die due to the explosion of the Kakhovka HPP

The Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Ruslan Strilets, said that nine Emerald Network sites and five Ramsar sites covering more than 76,000 hectares are under threat of extinction.

It will be almost impossible to restore these ecosystems to their original state. Flooding will also lead to soil degradation and erosion and wash away the entire fertile soil layer into the water. This, in turn, will not only destroy our fertile soils but also pollute the water resources of the Dnipro River. Another consequence is the loss of water. 

"As of today, we have already lost a third of the water from the Kakhovka Reservoir, which we accumulated during the spring floods," said Ruslan Strilets.

According to the head of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the flood may lead to a deterioration in water quality, as tonnes of household waste, demolition waste, and everything that has accumulated over the years on the reservoir's shore will flow into the Dnipro River and from there into the Black Sea.

According to him, the disaster will affect the water supply of the temporarily occupied Crimea. The level of the Kakhovka Reservoir is so critical that water will simply not reach the North Crimean Canal.