OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine draws attention to the need to improve access to water in conflict-affected areas

On World Water Day, marked on 22 March, the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) calls on the sides to ensure all people are provided with a reliable supply of water. Hostilities in the conflict-affected east of Ukraine continue to damage water infrastructure, critical to the survival of the civilian population, and disrupt access to sufficient, safe, acceptable and affordable water for people and businesses.

Within its mandate, the SMM facilitates and monitors adherence to the ceasefire to enable demining and repair work to water supply systems. Since the beginning of the year, the SMM has monitored some half a dozen incidents where ceasefire violations, including the use of heavy artillery close to water supply infrastructure have endangered workers’ lives and suspended repair works. 

Just recently the water filtration station between Yasynuvata and Avdiivka was affected. On 13 March, 12 employees, including nine women, of the Donetsk water filtration station had to take shelter from shelling. The station stopped operating on 4 March due to continuous active fighting, leaving about 400,000 residents of Yasynuvata, Avdiivka and parts of Donetsk city without water. Moreover, the presence of chemicals for water treatment poses an additional threat and could lead to an environmental disaster in case of a direct hit.

On 17 March, the SMM together with the Joint Center for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC) facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire enabling the resumption of operations at the water filtration station. Due to this co-ordinated large-scale and complex operation with daily patrols in four strategic locations, the station has since been working uninterrupted at its full capacity.

In September 2015, the SMM issued its thematic report on “Access to water in conflict‐affected areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions”. Six months later, the recommendations of this report are still relevant: the sides must abstain from indiscriminate or direct attacks against civilians and essential infrastructure. They must refrain from placing armed positions next to civilian infrastructure. The sides need to strengthen the protection of workers operating and restoring water supply systems. 

The SMM thematic report is available in English, Ukrainian and Russian: //www.osce.org/ukraine-smm/183151