A construction waste recycling plant has been launched in Mykolaiv.

This initiative was made possible through the city’s collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which provided Mykolaiv with modern equipment. At the plant, construction waste resulting from damage caused by Russian shelling is given a second life. Special equipment sorts and processes the waste into crushed stone of various sizes, which can then be reused in construction projects, particularly during road repairs.

This project is significant from both environmental and economic perspectives, exemplifying a circular economy where waste is repurposed for urban improvement rather than being sent to landfills.

Furthermore, Minister of Environment Svitlana Grynchuk noted that the volume of demolition waste in Ukraine currently exceeds six million tons, with much of it concentrated in front-line areas: Kharkiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Zaporizhzhia. At present, 13% of the housing stock, or 2.5 million households, is damaged or destroyed.

According to the Ministry of Development, the regions require over 1,200 units of machinery to process demolition waste, totaling more than $1B.