Don’t rebuild the dam: Ukrainian experts urge Unesco to protect site uncovered by Russian sabotage
Ukrainian archaeologists are uncovering historical artifacts along the Dnipro River following the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam. Experts are urging UNESCO to protect the site and oppose any plans to rebuild the dam, citing potential ecological and historical damage.
Why it matters
The situation highlights the intersection of war, environmental destruction, and the preservation of cultural heritage in conflict zones.
Andriy Denysenko, hydroarchaeologist, restorer and senior research fellow at Khortytsia national reserve. Andriy Denysenko, hydroarchaeologist, restorer and senior research fellow at Khortytsia national reserve. Ukraine Don’t rebuild the dam: Ukrainian experts urge Unesco to protect site uncovered by Russian sabotage As archaeologists find treasure trove along new floodplain, conservationists say another Nova Kakhovka would be ecocide
Prefer the Guardian on Google O n a warm September day, a group of underwater archaeologists and researchers were boiling water for tea on their campfire on the banks of the Dnipro River, tents pitched on the sandy shoreline. They were three weeks into an archaeological expedition of the waters around Khortytsia – a rocky island 12.5km long and 2.5km wide that lies just downstream of the city of Zaporizhzhia, in south-eastern Ukraine .
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