After destruction of the dam
The level of the Kachowka reservoir is falling rapidly
06/10/2023 3:28 p.m
Earlier this week, the Kachowka dam will be destroyed. Since then, large areas of the Cherson region in southern Ukraine have been under water and the reservoir continues to lose water. The Ukrainian ambassador in Germany expects damage in the billions.
According to the authorities, the Dnipro reservoir in southern Ukraine has lost more than a third of the flooding that accumulated in the spring after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam. “As of 12:00 on June 10, the level of the Kakhovka reservoir in the Nikopol area has dropped to 10.2 meters,” Ukrainian hydroelectric utility Ukrhidroenerho said on its Telegram channel. According to the operator, the hydroelectric power plants work at half power.
At the same time, Ukrhidroenergo announced that more water is now being dammed up in the upper reaches of the Dnipro in order to be able to generate electricity in the summer. As the third largest river in Europe, the Dnipro is dammed at six points in Ukraine for electricity production.
Damages in the billions
The Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, fears billions in damage to people, the environment and agriculture. “Cities, infrastructure, entire industries have to be rebuilt,” the diplomat told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “The overall damage will not be visible until the water has drained.”
According to the media report, after the explosion at the Ukrainian dam, the Ukrainian government submitted an application for immediate aid to the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and asked, among other things, for tankers for the drinking water supply, fire hoses, life buoys, motor pumps for dirty water and life jackets.
According to Makeiev, the reconstruction costs for Ukraine this year alone amount to 14.1 billion dollars (around 13 billion euros). “Of this, $3.3 billion has already been made available in Ukraine’s budget. Everything is needed, from drinking water filters to inflatable boats,” said the ambassador.
Fish kills in the Kherson region
Makeiev also worries about fishing and agriculture in the flooded region. “The losses to fisheries due to the loss of all biological resources will be serious. Fish kills have already been recorded in the Kherson region,” he said.
The grain industry in particular is now struggling. “More than 20,000 hectares of agricultural land, on which Ukrainian vegetable growing was concentrated, have been idle for many years,” Makeiev said. “The grain stores are under water. Only a few ships in the Black Sea ports that supply grain to the whole world can be loaded.”
The Kachowka dam was destroyed on Tuesday night. In the southern Ukrainian region of Cherson, large areas of land are under water – both on the right bank of the river controlled by Kiev and on the Russian-occupied left bank of the Dnipro. Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of destroying the dam. Moscow denies this and blames Kiev for the disaster. However, the Russian leadership has repeatedly told untruths in recent years, especially with regard to Ukraine.