On Tuesday, a powerful explosion inflicted severe damage to the Nova Kakhovka dam located in southern Ukraine.

According to BBC News, several thousand individuals have been forced to evacuate from nearby communities as devastating floods submerge low-lying regions on both sides of the Dnieper River.

The reservoir's water serves the southern Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, as well as the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, the largest in Europe, located to the north. 

The destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in Ukraine has led to devastating humanitarian and ecological consequences.

It has already had a negative impact on wildlife, including the tragic loss of animal lives in a small zoo located in the area. 

According to POLITICO, the zoo in the occupied region of Nova Kakhovka has been completely flooded, resulting in the loss of nearly all of the 260 animals, except for birds, as only swans and ducks were able to escape.

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), "ISW cannot offer a definitive assessment of responsibility for the June 6 incident at this time but finds that the balance of evidence, reasoning, and rhetoric suggests that the Russians deliberately damaged the dam."

The destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in Ukraine underscores the larger pattern of catastrophic risks posed by Russia, including the significant environmental damage resulting from the Russian invasion.

The OECD highlights that the war has caused severe damage to the environment and inflicted long-term consequences on the human health, ecosystems, and the Ukrainian economy.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme, the conflict has caused damage across multiple sectors, including nuclear power plants, energy infrastructure, mines, and industrial sites in various regions of Ukraine.

POLITICO points out that, according to Ukraine's Environment Minister, the estimated cost of the environmental damage inflicted by the war surpasses €48 billion.