ADRA Ukraine Aids in Regional Water Crisis
07 October 2024 |
“In the predawn hours of 6 June 2023, a pair of explosions rocked the Kakhovka Dam, a 3-kilometer-long hydropower facility on the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine.” This is the opening statement of an article in Science magazine scientific journal charting the deterioration of one of Europe’s largest reservoirs, and its repercussions. The reservoir’s destruction is just another form of collateral damage in the continuing war between Ukraine and Russia.
The environmental impact is formidable in its own right, yet the situation is dire for the 1 million citizens who have lost access to clean water. Over a year later, ADRA Ukraine installed water purification stations in the Bashtanka district of Mykolaiv region, Ukraine. The 14 stations are in educational institutions and hospitals in Snihurivka, Berezneguvate, Vysunsk, Vilne Zaporizhzhia, Kaluga, Shevchenkove-2, Pavlivka, Yurivka, and Kalynivka, with a 15th location planned to open mid-October 2024 in the village of Halahanivka, Snihuriv district, Mykolaiv region.
When the project began development, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints donated a large portion of the water treatment plants to ADRA Ukraine, recognizing the implications of contaminated water in schools, homes, and hospitals. These are epicenters of daily life, and the risk of poisoning a small child or contaminating a patient with compromised water supplies was high.
Climatologists, ecologists, environmentalists, and civil engineers are looking into how they can reverse the ecological crisis, improving the quality of life for residents. Yet while the war rages on, there is little chance for a quick recovery. In the meantime, ADRA Ukraine is doing what it can to meet the everyday needs of citizens, reinstating the dignity lost in wartime.