Implementation of the Soil Sampling Methodology on cleared agricultural lands and the role of the Humanitarian Demining operators

This, as well as technical recommendations on soil pollution, were discussed today at a meeting of the State Soil Protection Agency.

Clearing agricultural land of explosive objects is a critical step in returning it to safe use. At the same time, a new approach to the complex restoration of such territories is being formed in Ukraine — the method of soil sampling on agricultural lands cleared of Explosive objects, as well as arbitration samples, which in the future will become an important tool for quality control and environmental safety.

Currently, humanitarian demining operators are not directly involved in the practical implementation of this Methodology. However, SGS believes that it is operators who have the potential to become key players in this process in the future. With experience in war-contaminated areas, knowledge of cleared area boundaries and safety standards, operators can provide the organizational and technical basis for sampling.

"Thus, humanitarian demining is gradually transformed from an exclusively safe activity into a complex element of the restoration of agricultural territories. Implementation of the Methodology in cooperation with demining operators in the future will allow to combine the physical security of lands with the control of their ecological suitability", - note SGS.

This approach will be another step towards the sustainable development of rural communities, the recovery of the economy, and the return of Ukrainian lands to full life after the war.