Managing War Debris: Ekoltava Presented Its Research Findings in Berlin

On 12 November, at Vidnova Forum 2025 in Berlin, Ekoltava presented the preliminary results of its research on war-generated debris in Ukraine. The organisation was represented by its co-founder and director, Yuliia Melnyk, who delivered the presentation.

The event brought together the fellows of the Vidnova 2025 programme – activists and researchers working in the fields of IDP support, veteran rehabilitation, youth development, journalism, culture and trauma-informed approaches, environmental protection, and green recovery.

Despite the scale of destruction, very few studies on debris have been conducted during the full-scale invasion. At the same time, this issue is felt extremely acutely at the community level.

According to the former Ministry of Environment, as of June 2025, the volume of war-generated debris in Ukraine already exceeded 6 million tonnes, and this figure continues to grow. Yet accurate assessment remains difficult due to ongoing shelling and limited access to affected areas.

Such waste contains materials that pose a real threat to human health and the environment, and therefore requires dedicated mechanisms for collection, sorting, and disposal. This is why raising this issue again in 2025 was particularly important for us.

Our research provides a systematic view of how Ukrainian communities are currently dealing with massive amounts of debris waste, what barriers they face in managing it, and which solutions may be effective at both the local and national levels.

To assess the situation, we:
• conducted surveys in affected regions;
• analysed international experience with similar waste after conflicts and disasters – in Poland and Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• examined international standards and Ukrainian legislation to identify gaps and outline necessary steps.

We will soon publish a full report with recommendations and visual tools to strengthen legal regulation and improve the management system for debris waste during the war and throughout long-term recovery.

Follow updates on Ekoltava’s website.

This research was carried out within the Vidnova Program, created by Commit gGmbH with financial support from the Robert Bosch Foundation.