The Danube Delta is one of Europe’s largest and most important wetlands. Efforts by the Rewilding Ukraine team to restore natural water flow here are great news for Dalmatian pelicans and great news for local communities.
The war in Ukraine is taking a terrible toll on people and nature. Yet despite facing many challenges, the resilient Rewilding Ukraine team continue to see their efforts bear fruit.
For many years a network of dykes and canals have choked the life out of the Danube Delta. Rewilding efforts in the Ukrainian part of the delta are now restoring water flow, enhancing wildlife populations and benefitting local communities.
Removing dams is the best way of restoring rivers. The last European Rewilding Network webinar of 2019 saw 10 members come together to explore the topic and exchange experience and expertise.
Financed by crowdfunding, the removal of 10 obsolete dams on the Kogilnik and Sarata Rivers will help to restore wild nature and should provide economic benefit to local communities.
The herd of Konik horses shipped to the Danube Delta from Latvia earlier this year is now roaming free. Following a quarantine period the 23-strong group of animals has just been released on Ermakov Island, in the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta rewilding area. As the first ever shipment of Koniks into the delta, these hardy herbivores will diversify habitats and enhance local wild nature.
Rewilding Europe completed its first ever translocation of water buffalo last week, with a herd of seven animals successfully released on Ermakov Island in the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta. The hefty herbivores will create and maintain a mosaic landscape on the island – thereby supporting the area’s dynamic, wild nature – as well as driving development of local nature-based tourism.
Representing the first ever translocation of Konik horses into the Danube Delta, the shipment of 23 animals travelled by road from Latvia to the Ukrainian village of Orlovka. By helping to create and maintain mosaic landscapes, their grazing will help to boost biodiversity in the Danube Delta rewilding area.
The campaign, conducted as part of the Dam Removal Europe (DRE) initiative, saw nearly 20,000 euros contributed by Dutch donors. This will fund the removal of 10 obsolete dams from the Kogilnik River in the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta. The dismantling programme, which is set to begin this summer, will bring significant and wide-ranging benefits to local people and wild nature.
Rewilding isn’t only about nature – it’s about people too. The support, trust and passion of local communities will always be vital to the success of rewilding projects, regardless of scale and location. Gaining that support means ensuring that people can earn a fair living from the wild, and reaching out and building relationships through effective stakeholder communication.
