Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovy has called on Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman to declare Lviv and the villages of Malekhiv and Hrybovychi an environmental disaster area.
A post on the website of Lviv City Council reads that Sadovy explained his request by the law of Ukraine on environmental disaster area. We are facing two key problems today. The first one is the situation at the main landfill [in Hrybovychi]. There is a risk of another landslide, hence a threat to water reservoirs with infiltration. We have reinforced the dam so far and temporarily stabilized the situation, however we need the government's help," Sadovy said.According to the mayor, the situation with garbage removal from Lviv is the second problem.
Sadovy stressed that three main tasks should be fulfilled.
"First of all, we have to find a place for garbage removal from Lviv and eliminate the environmental threat to the city. Secondly, the Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Utilities Economy Ministry should speed up the approval procedure for a cooperation project with the European Investment Bank on the remediation of the landfill in Hrybovychi and the construction of an advanced waste disposal plant. A relevant document has already been considered by the Cabinet of Ministers for two months and Lviv has a chance to become the first Ukrainian city to settle the waste treatment problem in line with the European standards," the mayor said.
Sadovy added that the third task was a fair investigation into the fire at the landfill."There are all signs of arson at the landfill during which people were killed and an environmental threat emerged," Lviv mayor said.
