Abstract

Assessment of war damage and strategy for restoration of shelterbelts in south-eastern Ukraine

Ukraine is a globally important agricultural producer and exporter. A substantial part of Ukraine’s agricultural production is located in its south-eastern part, where semi-arid climatic conditions make the land vulnerable to severe droughts, wind, and water erosion. During the Soviet era, an extensive network of tree shelterbelts (windbreaks) was established in the region, mainly to protect fields from wind erosion. Apart from this, they provide other ecosystem functions, such as reducing evaporative water loss, hosting pollinators, filtering water, and lowering air pollution.

After the demise of the Soviet Union, many shelterbelts fell into disrepair due to the lack of maintenance, illegal logging, and frequent fires. The most severe damage, however, occurred with the onset of the full-scale war following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, as the shelterbelts provide cover for troops and military vehicles, making them targets of heavy shelling and bombing. Many have been destroyed, while others have suffered varying degrees of damage from shelling, bombing, fires, and the construction of fortifications from wood sourced from the shelterbelts. Severe pollution from spilt fuel, remnants of weaponry and vehicles, and unexploded ordnance further harm these ecosystems.

Our project aims to document, together with our Ukrainian partner institutions, the shelterbelts across six regions of south-eastern Ukraine (Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson) and to understand how the ongoing conflict has affected them. Because fieldwork is limited in many of these areas, we will rely mainly on medium- and high-resolution satellite imagery, which provides up-to-date coverage over large areas. Using this information, we will outline practical approaches for restoring damaged shelterbelts.

Activities:

• Map shelterbelts and assess their condition before the war, creating a clear picture of their spatial extent, distribution, and condition;
• Explore what shelterbelts do for the landscape, including how they help nearby crops and how they connect natural habitats;
• Measure how the war affected shelterbelts and their functions;
• Outline options for restoring destroyed and damaged shelterbelts in ways that support both farming and nature.

Outputs:

• At least two articles in open-access scientific journals
• All resulting data are published in online repositories for free viewing and download
• Interactive storymaps that demonstrate the extent, degree, and kind of damage to shelterbelts
• A policy brief for Ukrainian policymakers and stakeholders in English and Ukrainian, outlining our main results
• Dissemination of results in social networks and local media.
• Several online and offline workshops together with Ukrainian stakeholders
• Training and capacity building activities in satellite remote sensing