Activists Compiled a Ranking of Deputies Who Harm the Environment Most – Pidozra

Ruslan Stefanchuk topped the anti-ranking, and four representatives of Servant of the People shared second place

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk topped the anti-ranking of people's deputies whose legislative activity, according to environmental and civic organizations, does the most harm to the environment. This is shown by the results of the analysis by the civic initiative “Holka,” whose information partner is Hlavkom.

Fourth place in the anti-ranking was shared by four people's deputies from Servant of the People – Ihor Fris, Ihor Marchuk, Oleksandr Haidu, and Tetiana Hryshchenko.

The anti-ranking was compiled ahead of the seventh anniversary of the Verkhovna Rada’s work. Its authors analyzed the parliamentarians’ legislative initiatives and took into account expert assessments from environmental civic organizations, including WWF-Ukraine, Greenpeace Ukraine, the Center for Environmental Initiatives “Ecodia,” the Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group, and Teren.

The list includes both bills that are still under consideration by parliament and initiatives that have already been adopted.

infographic: “Holka”

Holka’s chair Iryna Fedoriv explained Stefanchuk’s leading position primarily by his draft of the new Civil Code, which is currently being prepared for second reading. According to her, the four deputies who shared second place cannot compare, in terms of the potential negative impact of their initiatives, with this document.

Fedoriv asserts that adopting the new Civil Code could effectively nullify the already established case law of the Supreme Court. The draft provoked significant resistance: a petition against it gathered more than 25 thousand signatures, and people's deputies submitted more than 15 thousand amendments. The Ministry of Justice also recommended removing the draft’s ninth book, which, according to environmentalists’ assessments, contains the most environmentally harmful provisions.

At the same time, Holka notes that changes to the current Civil Code began last year with the so‑called “Ihor Mazepa law,” which was submitted by people's deputy Ihor Fris.

Among the most harmful legislative initiatives, representatives of the organization Ecology — Law — People also named the draft law “On the Timber Market.” The organization’s executive director Olena Kravchenko emphasized that attempts by parliamentarians to weaken mechanisms for protecting nature, such as environmental impact assessment, are systemic.

Another initiative that raised concerns among environmentalists was draft law No. 15431 by people's deputy Ihor Marchuk. The authors of the anti-ranking call this project one for “VIP safaris” on wild animals.

WWF-Ukraine representatives believe that the proposed changes to rules for managing hunting grounds could weaken existing mechanisms for protecting wildlife. In particular, the bill foresees the use of certain technical means during hunting and expands opportunities for hunting during periods important for the reproduction of animal populations.

WWF-Ukraine urged the Verkhovna Rada not to support the legislative initiative and called on its authors to withdraw it due to possible risks to biodiversity and species that require special protection.

Recall that at the end of August the civic initiative Holka analyzed the activities of people's deputies from Ivano-Frankivsk region and their votes on legislative initiatives that could affect the environment. The piece “Who Did You Elect, Frankivshchyna? What Deputies from Prykarpattia Are Doing in Parliament” discussed, in particular, attempts to pass provisions that environmentalists consider dangerous for the Carpathians, as well as the activities of Ihor Fris.