Illegal felling of trees has been discovered on the territory of the Chernobyl Radiation and Ecological Biosphere Reserve. As reported by the Kyiv region police, the director of one of the companies organized the felling without obtaining the necessary permits, violating the terms of the contract with PJSC NEK Ukrenergo.
The investigation found that the contractor was supposed to clear power lines in the exclusion zone. However, instead of obtaining permits, he resorted to illegal actions, which resulted in the felling of 1,023 trees.
According to law enforcement officials, the damage caused to the environment exceeds 77 million hryvnias. The head of the enterprise has now been notified of suspicion under Part 4 of Article 246 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (“Illegal logging”).
The criminal proceedings are under the procedural supervision of the Vyshhorod District Prosecutor's Office. The suspect faces up to seven years in prison.
