The Supreme Court ruled: Bilychansky Forest is the territory of the city of Kyiv

The Supreme Court of Ukraine has recognized that the Bilychansky Forest is the territory of the city of Kyiv. This is stated in the decision of the Supreme Court, which was made by a panel of judges consisting of Andriy Rybachuk, Nataliia Kovalenko, and Anna Buchyk.

“The town of Kotsiubynske, which is an enclave of the city of Kyiv, has been attempting to parcel out the Bilychansky Forest of the capital since 2008. The land was then distributed by the Kotsiubynska village council to local deputies and their relatives. The former mayor of Irpin, Volodymyr Karplyuk, whose fence was already standing in the forest, and his team planned to build a hotel-office complex here. Defenders of the forest had their cars set on fire, and they were beaten. Despite everything, the forest became a national park, and the boundaries of the national park have been reflected on the cadastral map since 2021. In 2021, the Kyiv Regional Council and the Bucha District Council tried to help the land grabbers of the Pripyat region and approved a new scheme for Kyiv Oblast, unlawfully including the Bilychansky Forest within the boundaries of the oblast to legitimize the land grab. However, the Kyiv City Council, the Ministry of Ecology, the Holosiivsky National Park, and the prosecutor’s office defended the forest in court, and the Supreme Court put a final stop to it,” emphasizes the head of the “Holka” public initiative, Iryna Fedoriv, who has been fighting to preserve the Bilychansky Forest since 2009.

The decision of the Supreme Court states:

“… the courts of previous instances have established that the urban-type settlement of Kotsiubynske is, in fact, an enclave within the territory of the city of Kyiv. Under such circumstances, and taking into account the special legal status of the city of Kyiv, the borders of which are determined with regard to historical, socio-economic, and other features of the territory in accordance with current legislation, the Supreme Court concludes that the establishment (change) of the borders of the Kotsiubynske urban-type settlement of Kyiv Oblast at the expense of forest land located within the actual boundaries of the city of Kyiv and belonging to the natural reserve fund of Ukraine – the Holosiivsky National Nature Park, a part of which is protected by the KP ‘Sviatoshynsky forest and park management’, is impossible without the consent of the Kyiv City Council for such a land management project regarding the establishment (change) of the borders of an administrative-territorial unit, as well as without taking into account the interests of the owners of land plots and land users who are part of the Holosiivsky National Nature Park, therefore, the decision of the Bucha District Council of 20.10.2021 No. 180-11-VIII ‘On the approval of the land management project regarding the establishment (change) of the borders of the Kotsiubynske urban-type settlement of Kyiv Oblast,’ which was adopted without the necessary approval by the competent authority, does not meet the criteria defined by Article 2 of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine, and, accordingly, the conclusion of the court of appellate instance regarding its illegality and cancellation is correct.”

Recall that in 2008, deputies of the Kotsiubynska village council distributed plots of land in the capital’s forest among themselves and their relatives. The prosecutor’s office annulled most of the property rights documents for the land and continues this work in court.

In 2014, a presidential decree was signed that gave the forest the highest environmental status of a national park. In 2021, the boundaries of the national park were marked on the cadastral map.

In 2021, the Kyiv Regional Council approved a new scheme for Kyiv Oblast, which included part of the city of Kyiv. Subsequently, regional council deputies tried to change this decision. At that time, they lacked the votes – deputies from the “Servant of the People” party, associated with Oleksandr Dubinsky, who is being tried for state treason, did not support them. Later, based on the decision of the regional council, the Bucha District Council also adopted a decision essentially delineating new boundaries for the Kotsiubynske urban-type settlement at the expense of the capital’s forest. Kyiv went to court to challenge these decisions.